
Class _. 
Book_ 



Digitized by the Internet Archive 
in 2011 with funding from 
The Library of Congress 



http://www.archive.org/details/visittocolombiai01duan 



A VISIT 



TO 



COLOMBIA, 



ii 



BY LAGUAYRA AND CARACAS, OVER THE CORDILLERA 

TO BOGOTA, AND THENCE 

BY THE MAGDALENA TO CARTAGENA. 



BY COL. WM. DUANE, OF PHILADA. 




'^ PHILADELPHIA : 

PRINTED BY THOMAS H. PALMER, FOR THE AUTHOR. 



1826. 



Eastehn District of Pennsylvania, to wit : 

BE IT REMEMBERED, That on the 5th day of June, in the fiftieth yea? of 
the Independence of the United States of America, A. D. 1826, William Dtjane, 
of the said district, hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the right 
whereof he claims as author, in the words following, to wit : 

"A Visit to Colombia, in the Years 1822 and 1823, by Laguayra and Caracas, 
over the Cordillera to Bogota, and thence by the Magdalena to Cartagena. By 
Col. Wm, Duane, of Philada." 

In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States, intituled "An 
Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing- the copies of maps, charts, 
and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein 
mentioned." And also to the act entitled, "An act supplementary to an act, 
entitled, ' An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of 
maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during 
the times therein mentioned,' and extending the benefits thereof to the arts 
of designing, engraving, and etching, historical and other prints." 

D. CALDWELL, 
Clerk of the Eastern District of PennsylvaniQ, 



^' 



m^ 



U^'f 



PREFACE. 



THE Visit to the Colombian Republic was made on behalf of 
persons in the United States, having claims against the govern- 
ment, of which other agents had not procured the liquidation. It 
was supposed that I should be more likely to accomplish that ob- 
ject, and the business required that the first steps should be at Ca- 
racas. I proceeded thither, and thence across the Cordillera to Bo- 
gota, where I accomplished the settlement to a considerable amount. 
The parties in seeking to outwit each other embarrassed themselves; 
they however at length received the amount settled by mC' — but 
contrived to cheat me out of my commissions. The fact would not 
be noticed, were it not possible, that an entire silence tnight be con- 
strued into acquiescence in a transaction of transcendant knavery, 
meanness, and ingratitude. 

Thirty years ago I became acquainted with some inen of virtue 
and intellect, who Avere preparing the way for that revolution in 
South America, which is now realized. Those intimacies had, by 
exciting my sympathy, led me to bestow more earnest attention on 
the history, geography, and the eventual destiny of those countries. 
I perceived the commercial and political importance of those rich 
regions to the United States — countries possessing every thing that 
nature had bestowed on the other parts of the globe, and much more 
which none else possessed. A new creation springing out of chaos ; 
inviting the republic, which had only a few years preceded, to com- 
municate its institutions, exchange its useful products, anc| promote 
a family of republics, whose institutions must eventually regenerate 
humanity. 

A free press enabled me to communicate my anticipations and 
conceptions, which I continued to make known, even though laughed 
at — and by persons too who are now as zealous friends^ as they were 



IV PHEFACE. 

before sceptical, hostile, and — worse. The generous love of liberty 
in a free nation, however, triumphed over insidious and open enmity 
to the new republics, and procured for my essays and my opinions 
a more rational reception ; the government of Colombia thought my 
efforts worthy of a vote of thanks ; and the kindness and hospitality 
which I experienced in a long journey of thirteen hundred miles, 
afforded me ample vengeance for the sneers of those who have now 
become the admirers of a revolution, which they before reviled or 
deprecated. 

No labour has been attempted in this work ; a mere conversational 
narrative, such as I should give to a circle of private friends, is all 
that I pretend to. I had proposed to comprise my volume within 
five hundred pages, but it has swelled to a hundred and twenty 
more ; and I find I have not said one half of what my opportunities 
and materials would enable me to say — on the internal state of the 
country — its commerce, domestic and foreign — its constitution — 
laws and policy — its statesmen and its parties — finances— public 
economy — colonization— arts. I meant to have said something abouv 
the Amphyctions of Panama, with the origin of which I was ac- 
quainted before any other person now living in the United States — 
and I proposed to bestow a chapter on the grand work of the strait 
of Panama^ to effect which I have made proposals to the Colombian 
government (sustained by capitalists) — and which, if accomplished, 
as I know it is practicable, would render the communication between 
the two oceans as free and more secure than the passage of the straits 
of Sunda or Gibraltar. 

When this sheet was going to the press, advices have been receiv- 
ed of a gust of civil war, at Valencia, in which the reputation of a 
hero of the revolution is involved. The occurrence is to be lament- 
ed, though the consequences carry nothing serious to the republic. 

The cause of this rumor may be found in the federative spirit — 
the spirit of party— and the blind passions of personal envy and 
personal disappointment, incident to all revolutions, and which are 
possibly necessary to complete the career of the revolution, and es- 
tablish the power of the laws, where the passions only had prevailed 
for so many ages. 

Circumstances dependant not on myself, will determine whether 
I shall publish any more on the subject. 



CONTENTS. 



PREFACE Page 3 

CHAPTER I. 
Voyage to Laguayra ••••« • ••• • 9 

CHAPTER n. 
Residence in Laguayra and incidents there ••••••••••••••••••••« 24 

CHAPTER m. 
Further anecdotes, and departure for Caracas ...••....•.•••«••••»•••••• 37 

CHAPTER IV. 
Caracas — first impressions — manners — oriental style of building* •••• • 52 

CHAPTER V. 

Plaza Mayor — market — college — library— ecclesiastical affairs • ••••••••••• 69 

CHAPTER Vr. 
Religious processions — visit to the country — military parades 87 

CHAPTER VH. 
Bolivar's birth-day — musical party — a coifee plantation • •••«••••*• 101 

CHAPTER Vni. 
Departure, preparations for — hints to travellers • 114 

CHAPTER IX. 

Cross the Guayra — cavalcade — the route to San Pedro — San Mateo • 128 

CHAPTER X, 
Sugar-mill at the Hacienda of the President Bolivar — pass of La Cabrera — 
Paez • 143 

CHAPTER Xr. 
Lake of Valencia — strategy at Naguanagua ....•••• •••».•.•••••• 160 



VI . CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XIT. 

Grenadiers of Colombia — Senator Penalver— barbarity of Boves»»» Page 177 

CHAPTER XHI. 
Carabobo — Captain Spence and Morales ••....«••• t. ■••■•■••« 190 

CHAPTER XIV. 
San Carlos— El Altar—buttress tree 204 

CHAPTER XV. 
Barquisimeto — Alcalde — dismal plain — Tucuyo 218 

CHAPTER XVI. 
Humacaro Baxo — knavish Alcalde — wild country. •••. 236 

CHAPTER XVn. 
Obispos — Carache — Santa Ana — treaties there •• ....•• 249 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
Truxillo — Gen.Clemente — soldier's widow — Mendoza — Christmas day. • « . • 262 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Motatan river — Timothes — curate — tournament — Erica — the Virgin of Chin- 

chinquira • • 280 

CHAPTER XX. 

Hospitality at Muchachees — Merida— Gov. Paredes — Sierra Nevada* •«••• 294 

CHAPTER XXI. 
Esido — I.agunillas — Natron Lake — turbulent Chama* »•••... 307 

CHAPTER XXII. 
Bayladoves — agriculture — Col. Gomez — Gritja — ruse de guerre — Post-house 

atElCobre 320 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Army magazines — Challomar — a bivac — Gen. Urdaneta — Capacho — Cucuta 335 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

Fandango — Saltikal post-house — Indian rancho, happy condition— Pamplona 351 

CHAPTER XXIV. 
Military depot — arsenal — military drills — training horses — Volcan de Agua 

— good Franciscan 3J'2 

CHAPTER XXV. 

Goitre — Capitanejo — bridge — videttes — Suata — Senora Calderon — Sativa 384 



CONTENTS. VH 

CHAPTER XXVI. 
Boyacca — traditions — Serinza — a French traveller* ••• Page 399 

CHAPTER XXVH. 
Santa Rosa — beautiful town and plain — hospitality — handsome population — 

Paypa — los diablos. azulos •• ••....•..••.••.••.«•••#•♦. 415 

CHAPTER XXVHI. 
Peeling winds — sublime wilds — Virgin of Chinchinquira, becomes a patriot 

— bull teazing •• • 428 

CHAPTER XXIX. 
Pra. Garcia — Tunja — Senor Soto — education* •••• 442 

CHAPTER XXX. 

Suesca — Hacienda — plain of Bogota — approach to the city — Plaza Mayor* * • 455 

CHAPTER XXXI. 
Cathedral — palace — market — Calle Real — artisans •••• **• 471 

CHAPTER XXXII. 
Cataract Taquendaraa — Suacha — Franciscan monastery* ••***••****• 490 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 

Geographic sketch — political distribution of the Republic*** •*•*•*..*... 501 

CHAPTER XXXIV. 
Congress of 1823 — state of the Republic, foreign relations'* **• 513 

CHAPTER XXXV. 
Affairs of interior ******* •••*... 526 

CHAPTER XXXVI. 
Financial Report— Report of the War Department— Naval Report 546 

CHAPTER XXXVII. 
Leave Bogota — Quindiu, Guaduas, Honda — hints to travellers* ***** 569 

CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
Rapids — passage of the Magdalena — Mompox ***... 586 

CHAPTER XXXIX. 
Leave Mompox — TenerifFe — anecdotes— Barranca Nueva — the digue — Tur- 

bajo — Cartagena * ** gQo 

APPENDIX.— No. I. Fundamental law of Angostura, 1819 623 

No. n. Fundamental law of Cucuta, 1821 625 

No, in. Itineraries*** ••*•*•*•*••*«••*••»*»»••» *»*••*• 627 



THE PLATES. 

The Pass of Cabrera, to face the title. 

The Fall of Taquendama, to face Chap. XXXII. 



A 

VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 



CHAPTER I. 

Embarcation, and reception on board. — A sister of Bolivar occupies same cabin. 
The mess a variety of cheei'ful and agreeable company. — Pass Sandy Hook, 
3d Oct. — ^joined by the Vincador, our consort — make sail S. E. — character and 
force of both ships, — The horse latitudes — conjectures concerning. — Ship put 
in fighting trim. — Anecdote of Sefiora Bolivar. — See Sombrero 14th, afternoon 
— passed close to Orchilla — glimpse of Cape Codera. — Coast as approached 
Caravallada — historical anecdote of its spirited population. — Foundation of 
Laguayra. — The Sierra Avilla seen, and the Silla— aspect of the mountains in 
front. — Palm trees at Maquiteia — and town. — Casemates of Laguayra con- 
stantly beaten by the surf — prison and grave of patriots. — Anchor on 1 8th with 
fourteen fathoms cable out — salute, and salute returned. — The U. S. corvette 
Cyane, CSpt. Spence — his manly conduct — land the 18th.— A harbour easily 
formed here secure against all storms. — Find acquaintances unexpectedly. — 
Kindness of American consul, and Commodore Daniels — introduced to Com- 
mandant — quarters. — Oriental style of building and living. — Politeness of a 
friend. — Baggage not examined. — Mode of carrying ashore — paying porters. 

The Colombian Government, through their agent, Com- 
modore Daniels, had purchased the beautiful corvette Her- 
cules, built by Mr. Eckford of New York, in the fall of 
1822 : the Commodore, understanding I was about to visit 
Colombia, with his accustomed generosity, offered me a pas- 
sage, which was extended with the same kindness to my 
daughter Elizabeth, and stepson Lieut. R. Bache, of the U. S. 
Artillery. We were at New York in time, and embarked at 
noon on the second of October, 1822 ; and the same evening 
anchored within Sandy Hook. 

2 



10 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

• The experience and kindness of the commodore had anti«. 
cipated every thing that could render our passage and ac- 
commodations pleasant* The state cabin had been appro- 
priated to Stnora Antonia Bf>livar and her daughter Jose- 
phine ; the otht r two births, one to Elizabeth, and one 
to myself. Young Pablo, the son of Stnora Antonia, and 
Lieut. Bache, were lodged in the two births next contigu- 
ous. The state cabin was also the mess room, and besides 
the Commodore and those above mentioned, the mess con- 
sisted of Captain Austin, who navigated on the part of the 
owners ; the ship's husband ; and such of the officers and 
passengers on board, in rotation, as the space would con- 
veniently admit. We had a great variety of characters, and 
(what does not always happen on board crowded ships) there 
was not a single squabble nor dispute during the voyage ; 
good humor, and an unstudied disposition to afford every ser- 
vice that could be agreeable, rendered the passage rather a 
party of pleasure on a river than a voyage at sea in a ship 
of war. 

Capt. Austin, who was to deliver the ship at Laguayra, 
united the literary character with the seaman, and left no- 
thing on his part undone to contribute to the general comfort 
and pleasure. The officers who occasionally dined with us 
gave a diversity to our company, and there appeared to be no 
sort of contention but who should be most obliging and atten- 
tive. Our fare, to the hour we landed, was in every respect 
equal to what we should expect at the best hotel in New 
York ; and the wines were equally excellent and abundant. 

The first dawn of the 3d of October found us under top- 
sails outside Sandy Hook, of which we very soon lost sight. 
About 11 o'clock descried a sail, which proved to be the 
Vincador, Colombian sloop of war, Capt. Shannon, who had 
been cruizing for us several days. After the usual commu- 
nications between the ships, made sail our course to the S. E. 
till otherwise ordered. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 11 

The corvette being to be delivered only at Laguayra, car- 
ried the stripes and stars. The Vincador, the colors of Co- 
lombia. The Hercules, which after her transfer took the 
name of Bolivar, carried twenty five 32 pounders, such as 
are usually carried by U. S. corvettes ; besides two brass 
24 pound cannon on her forecastle. Her crew consisted of 
220 prime seamen, principally of the crew lately discharged 
from the U. S. frigate Macedonian. 

The Vincador carried fourteen guns, and her ordinary 
complement of 150 seamen, besides the like number of vo- 
lunteers intended for other ships of the Colombian navy. 
On board both ships there were several experienced naval 
officers extra, destined for the same service ; arnong whom 
were Lieut. Christie, formerly of the U. S. navy, Mr. Mur- 
ray, formerly of the British navy, Capts. Clerke, Swaine, &c; 
men experienced in naval and military service ; besides a 
number of tyros, candidates for appointments in the naval 
service. 

The weather was fair and winds propitious ; nor had we 
a rough sea or foul weather during the passage, excepting 
the cobbling, sea and hazy atmosphere in what the sailors 
denominate the horse latitudes. 

It would seem that this agitation of the sea and clouded 
atmosphere are produced by the encounter of adverse cur- 
rents. The waters of the great current of the Orinoco, 
which is the grand feeder of the Gulf stream, do not all flow 
to the westward, and between Cape Catoche and Cape An- 
tonio ; much of those waters arc thrown to the N. E. and 
pass through the channels of the Windward Islands and the 
Antilles ; and I suspect that the warmth which is perceptible 
in those currents, brought from the regions beneath the equa- 
tor, meeting at those latitudes the currents from the N. W., 
which bring them within the cold temperature of the north, 
produce at once this short and broken sea, and the vapour 
which for two days excluded the cheering rays of the sun. 



IS VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The sailors assign as the origin of the name horse latitudes, 
that it has been given by those who, in supplying horses 
to the West India islands, here often encountering a more 
than usually rough sea, are compelled for safety to throw 
their cargoes overboard. I am not aware that this is the 
same maritime position to vyhich the Spaniards give the name 
of El Mare de los Mulas. 

This bickering of the waves, which appeared trifling to 
persons accustomed to the sea, was considered very rough 
weather by those whose first voyage it was. Our course 
was not materially interrupted, and the third day restored us 
to sunshine, and our dining table to a horizontal position, and 
the gallant ship again floated majestically on an even keel 
eight and ten knots an hour. Indeed, the passage resem- 
bled more the even movement of a steamboat on a spacious 
river, than that of a ship of war on the broad and often bois- 
terous Atlantic. 

Our consort never parted company, reporting alongside at 
sunrise and sunset, and sometimes exchanging visits; which 
to some of the passengers was very satisfactory, under the 
apprehension that we might be overhauled by Spanish ships 
of war ; an apprehension totally unfounded, as there was no 
ship then in those seas of sufficient force to encounter us; 
and if there were, independent of the importance of our con- 
sort, our ship was completely equipped, and was soon after 
putting to sea prepared for such a contingency : our flag, it was 
reasonable to think, would have prevented a conflict ; but if 
the worst should occur, we had a heavy broadside, an expe- 
rienced and intrepid ship's company, and about a dozen gal- 
lant ofl&cers on board, each competent to command, and who 
had seen some rough service and given some hard knocks. 

The sailors disliking nothing so much as lounging in their 
hammocks, or on the spars, or the forecastle, and besides it 
being good for their health, the fine weather was used to put 
the ship in fighting trim. The routine of discipline, which 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 13 

is that of the U. S. navy, in the distribution of duties and 
the assignment of stations, was soon accomplished, and every 
gun had its captain, gunner, and assistants. Gangs of board- 
ers were organized, and helmets, hangers, pikes, axes, and 
hand grenades distributed. The idlers (that is, all on board 
who are not of the ship's complement) were organized as 
marines, furnished with rifles, and assigned to the poop, 
forecastle, and tops; and the spirit-stirring drum beat all 
hands to quarters. In an instant every thing was in a bustle, 
cours'es hauled up, matches lighted, water tubs placed, and 
every gun manned. The silence was as emphatic and im- 
pressive as the momentary agitation. The word Jire / was 
echoed by the roar of the guns ; and succeeded by the same 
impressive silence. The guns being scaled and reloaded, 
the sham-fight closed with a real frolic, — abundance of grog 
for the ship's company. 

To those who are unaccustomed to the " note of prepara- 
tion" for military action, this mere semblance could not but be 
impressive. In the course of the preparation Senora Antonia 
requested the commodore to inform her where she was to take 
her station in case of an action ? The commodore, with per- 
fect presence of mind, assured her. that she had not been ne- 
glected ; that no station on board in time of action was more 
important than the charge of the magazine, which was never 
entrusted but to the most worthy and confidential ; that this 
charge would be committed to herself, and Miss Josephine 
and Miss Elizabeth should be her assistants. She appeared for 
an instant satisfied, but the commodore adding ; that the ma- 
gazine was below the range of shot, and therefore perfectly 
out of danger, the countenance of the good lady, before per- 
fectly composed, appeared to be lighted up by indignation, 
and her eye sparkling, she exclaimed — " JVo ! no^ Senor 
Commodore ! no quiero ! — mi nombre es Bolivar, y 7ni lugar 
es en frente del peligro.''^ No ! no, Mr. Commodore, this 



1* VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

must not be ; my name is Bolivar, and when there is danger 
my station is in front. 

It was the emotion of a moment ; the expression was ani- 
mated, and the effect electrical ; it was not until the commo- 
dore assured her of a station near himself on the quarter 
deck, in case of any adventure, that she was reconciled. To 
me the incident was the more remarkable, because when the 
sea chanced to be agitated in the horse latitudes at night, or 
the ship leaned with a stiff breeze, her hours were devoted 
to unceasing prayer ; the holy rosary was repeated; and the 
responses .by her amiable daughter, as long as tlie ship was 
any way disturbed in its motion. 

On the evening of the 14th of October the island of Som- 
brero was distinctly marked on our starboard bow ; and wp 
changed our course to the westward. On the morning of 
the 15th Saba rose ahead, apparently about the size and 
shape of an inverted teacup ; by one o'clock it was largely 
defined to the S. S. E. about ten miles, and as we passed at 
ten knots an hour, under our upper sails, the figure constant- 
ly changed. About five o'clock St. Christophers and Ne- 
vis were in sight, and, in the dim distance, St. Eustatia with 
its double summit S. W. The whole groupe of islands in 
that direction, bore the appearance of headlands to a conti- 
nuous continent, and as if stretching from S. E, to N, W. 

This navigation is so well known, that nothing novel 
could be said about it; what has been said is intended ra- 
ther to show the good judgment by which the track was cho- 
sen, the facility of the passage, and the short time in which 
it was performed. Our course lay by the northward of the 
celebrated leHge, at the extremity of which is Bird-island ; 
and then parallel with its west side, our course nearly south. 

On the 16th we heard the surges beat against the steep 

° solitary rock of Orchilla, distant about three miles on our 

larboard ; the boisterous surf seemed to rage in eternal anger 

at its base. At half past four we had the first glimpse of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 15 

terra firma on our larboard bow. The atmosphere was loaded 
with a sleepy vapor, which appeared like a curtain hung hori- 
zontally about one hundred feet above our topmast heads ; 
the space beneath dimly but distinctly lighted, so that we 
could discern Cape Codera as if growing out of the sea as we 
approached land ; after some time it presented its rounded 
summit and bteep north tace to the ocean; and on the south 
side inclined gradually to the margin of the shore, where 
the view was- concealed by clouds of vapor of different light 
and shade. The lake of Ticaragua lies to the eastward of 
Cape Codera a few leagues, it is an oval bason of twenty by 
fifteen miles, lormtrly open to the sea like the Cinegas of 
Maracaibo and La Hacha, but now only accessible in small 
boats. This Cinega receives the waters of many valleys, 
and particularly those of the Tuy and Caracas. The evapora- 
tion Ironi these waters 1 presume intercepted the view, and 
gave the position an appearance of an inland gulph or the 
mouth of a vast river. 

A little farther west lies the dark base of the Sierra, which 
seems placed like a barrier against the ocean, which perpetu- 
ally beats like a battering ram against its feet, and retiring 
only to return again with never exhausted force. The coast 
from Cape Codera to Laguayra, about eighty miles apart, has 
an ample curve, more apparently regular than real ; nor do 
the mountains rise so abruptly and precipitous within the 
Cape, as nearer to and^ in front of Laguayra. The coast is 
rugged and rocky, westward of the Cape ; farther west there 
is some space between the sea and many recesses in the line 
of mountains, upon which scenes of a highly picturesque char- 
acter are open to the sea : many small plantations covered 
with verdure, and trees too minute to tell their character or 
class ; rocky cliffs again appear ; and not less than seventeen 
small rivers issue from the Sierra, some of which carry boats 
two or three miles inland through those narrow valleys, that 
seem crevices in the mountain, and along the margin of 



lb VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which are fine fields of sugar cane and cacao plantations ; 
near Caravellada, the position at first selected for a port on 
this coast, cultivation is more extensive, and the coast is 
composed of detached hills which bear their verdure to their 
summits. De Pons has given a concise account of the cause of 
its abandonment, which becomes of more interest from the 
events that have since taken place, than when he narrated it, as 
it corroborates the declarations of intelligent men, that notwith- 
standing the iron despotism of the Spanish government, and 
the more galling tyranny of its deputies, there was alivays 
in S. America a latent spirit which required only a spark to 
kindle it into a general blaze. Caravellada was established 
by Losada in 1568, and had a cabildo or corporation : the 
members of cabildos throughout America were elected by 
the people. In 1586, Roxas the governor undertook to di- 
vest the people of the right of election, and appointed alcaldes 
himself, ordering the four regidors to be arrested. The peo- 
ple assembled and came to an unanimous resolution to aban- 
don the place, and they fulfilled their engagement, retiring 
to Caracas, Valentia, and other places. The affair being 
■made known in Spain, the regidors were released, and the 
inhabitants invited to return ; they never returned ; but 
some of them selecting. the position of Laguayra, it be- 
came the port of 'entry and clearance for Caracas, and has 
continued to be. The places of note west of Laguayra are 
Catia, Arrecifes, La Cruz, Coroni, »Ocumare bay, Turia- 
mo, Barbaruta, and Porto Cabello. 

The veil which appeared suspended above us, now seemed 
to rise and expose the summit of the first ranges of the Sierra, 
holding vast fleeces of snow-white clouds behind them, and 
concealing ranges in yet greater elevation and remote succes- 
sion, which Soon appeared in more distinctness, but still clad 
with clouds in the utmost distance. The line of the Sierra 
Avilla, which is the mountain that separates Caracas from 
the coast, was now clearly defined, but the Silla, like a coy 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 17 

damsel of the region, still retired her head, scarcely con- 
cealed by a gauzy veil, the skirt of which flared in the air to 
the south-west. A brighter light above, and the shadows 
of the mountain upon the glassy waters followed, and pre- 
sented a most sublime spectacle — still further adorned by 
the lofty Silla, which had now cast its veil of clouds away, 
and exposed its double summit to the admiring visitor. 

Along the mountain foot a white vanishing line appeared— 
it was the beating surf, not yet to be distinguished by the 
car. No level space for human foot was visible between 
the steep declivity and unceasing surge. Drawing still 
nearer, the eye is engaged by a brighter steady white line on 
the sea verge ; and behind, the appearance of a longer, higher 
range, of less distinctness — it is the long rampart that marks 
the port and the town of Laguayra, which seems stuck up 
against the face of the steep. Attracted to the right, a small 
promontory thrust into the sea, appears covered with Palmyra 
palms, which half conceal houses in the rear, on higher 
ground. It is Maquiteia, a handsome village about half a 
mile west of Laguayra. Before the eye is satisfied in con- 
templating this refreshing tropical picture, the objects appear 
more distinct and enlarged ; but the face of the mountain 
between Maquiteia and Laguayra displays a dreary and deso- 
late aspect, of dusky and grey shades ; projecting rocks and 
broken red and yellow soil, sterile and destitute of verdure, 
as if the ocean had been pelting at it for ages, and left it alike 
bare of fruits and of vegetation. There are however, scat- 
tered on distant spots, three or four species of Cactus, im» 
perceptible in the distance ; and some Agaves or American 
Aloes, have seized upon some " coigns of vantage," and 
with giant arms hold places in their native soil. 

The whole line of coast from Cape Codera is now dis- 
played, and west of Maquiteia, about three miles, stands 
Cape Blanco, but with less altitude than made it formerly 
remarkable : it was sometimes spoken of as the west horn 

3 



18 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of a bay, of which Codera was the east ; but without any 
other than a remote similitude. 

The Silla is now also more distinct, and the form of its 
summit, which has been named from a distant resemblance 
to a saddle, here gives its shape distinctly ; the eastern sum- 
mit being the highest, is said to resemble the fore part or 
pommel of a saddle, and the western or lowest summit com- 
pared to the cantle or hind part of the seat. The shore is 
no longer still nor silent, the roar of the beating surf is un- 
ceasing ; and there appears a space between the surge and 
the mountain which presents a picture as minute, busy, and 
agitated as an anthill whose inmates are disturbed. Men 
and mules are the actors in this busy scene ; a spacious 
causeway, the product of very great and judiciously applied 
labour, leads from the postern or Caracas gate to Maquiteia, 
and is also the high road to Caracas, As seen from the dis- 
tance, it appears no broader than a ribbon, though it is, in 
many places, 60 and 100 feet broad, and is constructed about 
ten feet above the ordinary water line. 

As the sun gained the south-west, the shadows of the 
Sierra slanted along the coast to the eastward, and left the 
horizon bright and clear, and, about two o'clock of the ISth, 
we came to anchor with 14 fathoms of cable out, in a posi- 
tion about equidistant from Laguayra and Maquiteia, and a 
mile from the shore. The three fortifications behind the 
town, the works in front, and the village of Palms on our 
right, were now perfectly distinct, and proportionably inte- 
resting. The warmth of the glowing sun, the bright at- 
mosphere, and the grove of palms, gave to me an Ori- 
ental resemblance ; and all appeared to more advantage, 
except the battered aspect of the Sierra, on nearer approach. 
The recess, or scooped out space of the mountain, in the 
rear of the town, eastward, seemed more depressed, than 
when seen from the distance, and the principal fortress on 
the shoulder of the mountain had the appearance of a regu ■ 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 19 

kr work. I did not attempt to visit either, the ascent ap- 
pearing to me rather difficult for goats. They appear less 
perpendicular on shore ; but, for military purposes, their 
shot would not reach the anchorage, and could therefore be 
of no use, unless to batter an enemy in possession of the 
town, in the rear. 

The fortification on the margin of the sea, in front of the 
town, appears to have been originally a palanka thrown up 
to mask the main street, with which it runs parallel: the ram- 
part now is a well constructed curtain of masonry, without 
bastions, but it has a curved outward segment of a circle, of 
which the diameter may be seventy yards, and the radius six 
or eight feet ; not sufficient to enfilade either flank with ef- 
fect. It is casemated, the masonry arched and bomb proof; 
the surf eternally beats its foundation and dashes the spray 
over the rampart, which is without embrasures. The case- 
mates beneath, as may be presumed, are for ever dripping. 
It was in these horrible casemates, the gallant patriots of the 
revolution were incarcerated, while the Spaniards held the 
place ; and it was also the prison, often the grave, of men of 
virtue, before the revolution. Melancholy, however just, has 
been the retaliation ; had the deputy tyrants, who gave the 
example, been themselves the objects of retribution, hu- 
manity would have no cause to lament them ; but experience 
appears not to have had any effect upon the Spanish chiefs ; 
who, persuaded and careful that retaliation should not reach 
themselves, from the precautions always made to insure their 
own escape, felt no concern nor sympathy for their country- 
men, involved in the consequences of their barbarity. 

There were but a few guns mounted ; a considerable num- 
ber had been transferred upon other service. The work it- 
self appears to more advantage on inspection, though the only 
skill manifest is the workmanship of the masonry and the 
casemates. I had assimilated the appearance of Funchal in 
Madeira from its road with that of Laguayra, by which many 



20 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

years apfo I had been deceived in the external appearance ; 
but as Fuiichal proved to be very much worse on shore than 
it promised at the distance, I found myself, by the false aS" 
sociation, again deceived ; for Laguayra proved to be much 
better within than it appeared from without. 

But 1 am rambling into a description of what is on shore 
before I have yet landed. Upon coming to anchor the two 
ships saluted, and were answered from the citadel. The 
rmmtrous bhips in the road hoisted their colours, and in the 
van we recognized with particular satisfaction the U. S» 
Corvette Cyane, captain Robert Spence, who while we 
were at Caracas did so much honour to his flag, his counrry, 
and himself, by his prompt, manly, eloquent, and effective 
repulse of the outrageous menaces put forth in a proclama- 
tion, by the Spanish general Morales; menaces which he 
dared not to realize thereafter. 

The hour of our arrival, and the bustle incident to entering 
port from the sea, rendered it prudent tor the ladies to defer 
going on shore that evening ; but on the 19th in the morning 
betimes the custom- nouse barge was along-side, and Seno- 
ra Bolivar and her family were conveyed on shore, and the 
other cabin passengers, whom she invited, accompanied her. 

The landing at Laguayra has been held forth as unusually 
dangerous. Those who have had occasion to land at St» 
Helena or at Madras, would consider it as a matter of very 
little difficulty at the worst, and we landed without any in- 
convenience whatever. The mode of landing from boats in 
common, is upon a stairs, attached to the side of a long wharfj 
which is projected on piles 160 or 170 feet into the sea : the 
boatmen are skilful, they place the boat in such a position 
as to swing with the rising swell to the side of the stairs, and 
the passenger seizes the instant before the surf recedes to jump 
or step on shore. Some accidents have occurred, but more 
through inexperience in the boatmen, or want of self- posses - 
sion in the passenger, than any other cause. We landed in 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. SI 

a manner such as I had seen practised in Sandy Cove, St. 
Helena, by the boats of some American whalers, one of a 
company who made a party of pleasure round that island in 
1795, where I was detained three months. Upon approach- 
ing the beach, the boat was rowed in, stern foremost, so as 
that the coming surge should carry her in full swing upon 
the strand. It was executed with skill ; the moment the 
boat touched ground the rowers cast their oars into the re- 
tiring surf, and held the boat to prevent her floating off. 
Before the surge could return, each boatman took a lady 
upon his arm, as a nurse would take a child, and placed her 
safe above the water line ; the returning surge brought back 
the oars, and the boat floated off" with the retiring wave. 

The time surely cannot be remote when the citizens and 
proprietors of Caracas and its rich neighbourhood will per- 
ceive how much they are interested in forming a commodi- 
ous and secure harbour at Laguayra. Nature, which has 
prepared so nmch in the rough for man to finish, has provi- 
ded already one spacious mole in the little promontory of 
Maquiteia ; the materials for another are on the spot ; and 
a port capj'ble of protecting a thousand sail of the line from 
the worst storms of the Caribbean sea, may be formed at a 
less expense of money than such a work could be executed 
so near a great city in any part of the globe. 

Having landed, we had the gratification to find, very unex- 
pectedly, several acquaintances and friends waiting to greet 
us, some of them from Caracas, fifteen miles distant. The 
respectable consul of the United States, R. K. Lowry, among 
the rest ; he had already fixed it, that Elizabeth should, 
during her stay, reside with her townswoman, Mrs. Lowry, 
at Maquiteia, and such arrangements had been made for all 
our accommodation as left us nothing to wish for. 

Commodore Daniels, untired by the civilities rendered 
us on board, received us at the water-gate, and conducted 
lis to the quarters of the commandant, to whom he intro- 



SiS VISIT to COLOMBIA. 

duced us, and by whom we were received with soldierly 
courtesy. Colonel — — appeared to be about twenty. 
eight years of age, tall, slender, and perfectly military in his 
costume and demeanor ; he is One of the numerous youths 
who have been born at the right time to distinguish them- 
selves, under the eye of Bolivar, in the battles and triumphs 
of independence. This class of men, created by the revolu- 
tion, are by a sagacious policy placed in stations of confi- 
dence and honour, where the habits of military yigilance, or- 
der, and punctuality are acquired, and which will prepare 
habile men for the public service, to supply the places of 
the defenders of liberty, which the order of nature will 
ere long vacate among their seniors in the revolution. 

The quarters of the commandant are spacious ; they oc- 
cupy the north-west angle of the line of defence, and are 
covered below by a breast- work of good masonry with em- 
brasures, which covers the postern gate and causeway on 
the west, and the landing on the north or sea front. A pas- 
sage of fourteen or fifteen feet forms a sort of covert way, 
and separates the rampart from the house, which is of stone, 
and two stories high, the lower of which is masked by the 
breast- works ; these are the offices for domestic uses, storage, 
&c. The upper story is the residence, to which the ascent is 
by a double flight of spacious stairs at the west end, which 
terminate in an ample saloon, covering the west front and 
open upon the sea to the north ; the apartments, which are 
lofty, are entered from the saloon, and lie in the direction 
east and west — a verandah, or open gallery, fronting on the 
sea. The style of building, the pavements, the high fold- 
ing doors, the broad staircase, and the elevation of the apart- 
ments, with the naked timbers of the structure, brought to 
my mind the strong resemblances of what I had seen many 
years before in different parts of Asia. 

After paying our respects, and partaking of the good Cata- 
lonian wine of the commandant, and the excellent sweetn^eats 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 23 

of his good lady, we retired to meet with fresh evidences of 
the hospitahty we were to receive without anticipating them. 
A friend had sent from Caracas, a well-trained grey mule, 
tastefully caparisoned with a handsome side saddle, which 
was to be for the use of my daughter during her stay at Ca- 
racas ; and upon this she made her first equestrian essay, by 
galloping off with a gay young party to Maquiteia, where 
she was received by her friend Mrs. Lowry. I had felt 
some disquiet for Elizabeth, looking to the long journey of 
thirteen hundred miles, which she was to perform on the 
backs of mules only; but this first essay satisfied me, and 
the event justified the conclusion, for she made the j-ourney 
with much less fatigue than I did. 

While we were paying our respects to the commandant, 
our baggage had, through the care of our worthy consul, 
been transferred to the custom-house, where, as a testimony 
of respect, it was exempted from the usual search, and de- 
posited in the stores of the consul. The manner of landing 
the baggage reminded me of the same kind of transaction 
at the ghauts of Pondicherry and Calcutta. Upon the ap- 
proach of the baggage boat to the landing place, a crowd of 
men and boys, of every shade of complexion and apparel, 
rushed forward in a tumult, and each seizing the article 
nearest hand, bore it away, until there was no more to carry, 
and deposited them at the custom-house ; where those that 
underwent examination were removed as the owner direct- 
ed. The mode of payment was in the same oriental style. 
The consul, who undertook to do for us as his experience 
and our want of it induced him, having provided himself 
with a sufficient sum in the macutina, or silver currency, of 
the country, commenced with calling to him the porters who 
had brought the largest loads, and, in succession, handed 
each according to service a real, a media, or quartilla ; the 
real is our disme or eighth of a dollar, the media is the half 
of a real, and the quartilla, a fourth of the real. I shall take 
some further notice of this currency in another place. 



M 



CHAPTER II. 

Delay at Laguayra agreeable. — Mules here perform the services of horses^ 
carts, coaches, and wagons in other countries. — Enter the town by a short 
steep street to the main street — described — stores and other buildings Asiatic 
style — ruins from Earthquake, 1812 — Military works — accommodation at Ho- 
tels — expenses — better than in any public houses in the interior — absence of 
musquitoes and flies — mixture of ancient and modern furniture — absence of 
■wheel carriages — the want of roads — a carriage road and rail road proposed 
through the valley of Tipe. — Rail roads unsuitable to a large country. — 
Carts introduced at Petare. — Houses of stone unaffected by Earthquake. 
— Public fountains abundant — good water. — Humboldt exaggerates — not im- 
moderately warm in October — more dependence on thermometers than 
is justifiable, — Madras, Calcutta, and Batavia, extremely hot compared with 
Laguayra — prevalence of diseases also exaggerated — no marshes nor marine 
vegetables contiguous. — Incident at Barbaruta. — Rival towns calumniate each 
other. — The effect of Spanish policy. — A wliole country prospers by the 
prosperity of any of its parts. — Hints to visiters of the tropical regions. — Dif- 
ferent views of the great mortality in the Earthquake. — Appearance of the 
military — anecdote of two sentinels — soldiers compared with the sepahis of In- 
■dia. — Laguayra may be ma,de a spacious and safe harbour — the interests of 
Caracas and proprietors to establish such a harbour. 

Though the voyage was but a party of pleasure, the 
novelty of the new country and manners, but, above all, the 
Ivuidness of old and new friends, rendered the delay of one 
or two days agreeable ; which we must wait for the return 
of mules from Caracas, as is customary, on stated days. This 
invaluable animal performs all the services, which, in other 
countries, employ wagons, carts, coaches, postchaises, and 
even wheelbarrows, as well as those of horses for business or 
pleasure. Our shipmates too did not wish to separate with- 
out the participation of a cheerful dinner and a parting 
glass. I had therefore an opportunity to see the interior, as 
I had already seen the exterior of Laguayra. 

There are three gates of entrance to the town : that at the 
east of the works is seldom opened but for public uses, and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S5 

is not a thoroughfare. The principal entrance for strangers 
coming from sea, and for baggage and merchandize, is the 
water-gate. This gate has in front, upon the margin of the 
sea, a broad and spacious platform of stone masonry ; and 
the wharf, erected upon piles, extending into the surf, more 
than 160 feet in length. A short street or lane leads up 
from the water-gate towards the main street ; the custom- 
house is at the right side of the entrance, and a sort of picket 
guard occupies the left ; above, on the right, opens the pas- 
sage to the commandant's quarters ; and at the head of this 
short street commences the main street, which leads ofF to 
the eastward about half a mile. The continuation of the 
short entering street is about 30 feet broad, but is prolong- 
ing up the ascent, only reduced to about 15 or 16 feet, all 
admirably well paved. The houses on the main street, on 
the right side, and in front of the entrance, are principally 
occupied by merchants's stores, and have the exact appear- 
ance of the Godowjis or stores in the Asiatic cities; long 
and spacious, admitting light only through the folding doors 
in front, and of one story ; though there are many houses 
in this range of two, and very good of their style of struc- 
ture. 

There is a slight descent to the eastward in this part of 
the street, and the line is not direct, nor the breadth equal, 
it being in some places only twenty feet broad, towards the 
east end broader. The left side of the street, at the point 
of entrance, is also occupied by stores and dwelling houses, 
but the Hne is very much broken by ruins, which remain 
since the earthquake of 1812; in several the rubbish is 
thrown into the space between the remaining walls ; but the 
streets are all cleared. 

On the outer side, bounding on the sea, is the line of de- 
fence, a broad platform of good workmanship, separated from 
the houses by a parapet. The breast work in front is with- 
out embrasures, and extends more than a quarter of a mile, 

4 



4b VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the space between the line of the street being gradually more 
open, and leaving a convenient space for a parade, between 
the casemates and the rear of the habitations. Nothing need 
be added of description to what has been already noted of 
this work. The garrison was but slender, and barely suffi- 
cient to supply sentinels for the chief entrances, for the 
works, and for purposes of police ; a few guns remain on 
the platform, in rather an unsightly state, at least to those 
who are accustomed to the discipline and order of well re- 
gulated garrisons. 

What I have said of the stores, applies to the general 
style of building, narrow streets, paved porches or entrances, 
paved patios, or open squares within the gates, corridores on 
all sides of those squares : broad stairs of coarse masonry, of 
double flights, with a landing : high and long halls, and narrow 
and retired sleeping apartments, rude and cumbrous furni- 
ture, and naked walls, with tiled floors : — -these points of 
oriental similitude are common, and applicable to all the places 
I have passed through ; and it is curious matter of fact, in elu- 
cidation of the influence of habits, and the spirit of imitation, 
that these forms should remain for so many centuries little 
altered from their Asiatic prototypes in Spain, which hold the 
same unaltered characteristics to this day. 

I may have occasion to notice the style of building more 
particularly in another chapter. The stranger who lands 
here is very fortunate, though he may not think so, when he 
enters one of the hotels at Laguayra, for in fact there is no 
other equal to them, in the whole line of the journey. There 
are two, one kept by a Frenchman, at whose table I partook of 
a well provided entertainment. He was not a novice in any 
part of his business, and his native talent had been much 
improved, by a residence in the British islands of the West 
Indies. The company was about thirty, and the table was 
covered with an abundance of excellent provisions, well 
cooked and displayed, and more than sufficient for double the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 27 

company ; the free circulation of the bottle, in the British 
West India fashion, was already before the dessert ; but the 
dessert was excellent, and the coffee introduced in the French 
mode was perfect. 

The expences are not so high as in the West Indies ; but 
as there is no tariff of prices, the eye and opinion of the fi- 
nancier, regulates the charges according to the apparent 
newness of the traveller, his real, or presumed opulence ; but, 
above all, by that principle of the economists, that demand 
governs price ; so that if there are few ships and few stran- 
gers, the price is reduced to the demand ; but if there be 
many strangers prices rise. 

A stranger may, so far as the table is concerned, fare very 
well ; but he who has not made up his mind to dispense with 
a pallet and fresh sheets, after leaving Laguayra, must re- 
solve to do so or go no farther ; for he will find no ac- 
commodations in a public house of entertainment equal to 
it, in the long range of near 2000 miles, which I visited. 
Comforts of this kind are to be found only in private dwel- 
lings. The climate is however an excuse for indifference ; 
the air is light, the respiration free, and favourable to plea- 
sant repose. I have heard there were musquitoes at La- 
guayra, but I declare that there, or in the whole rout of 1200 
miles to Bogota, I saw no musquitoes, nor was I plagued 
with the common fly which annoy us during the summer 
season in northern climates. I found musquitoes abundant 
on the Magdalena, and flies for the first time at Carthagena. 

Neither is the furniture of any kind so good in the interi- 
or as at Laguayra, where contiguity to the sea has admitted 
articles not to be found in the interior, because neither will 
the roads admit, nor the mules be able to carry articles of 
bulk, or unusual weight. A bureau or a sideboard, a hand- 
some sofa, or a piano forte, must therefore be transported on 
the heads and shoulders of men. Some articles of this de- 
scription have therefore remained, because the expence might 



28 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

be greater than the sacrifice. Mercantile men, therefore, 
should not send articles which are not transportable by mules, 
but in such boxes or packages as that two shall not exceed 
250 pounds weight, which may be carried to Caracas for two 
dollars, more or less, as the circumstances determine. But 
these articles of modern taste do not appear to advantage ; 
an elegant sofa alongside a coarse plank table, the finest im- 
plement which had passed over it was the saw or the jack ; a 
mahogany toilette table and swinging glass with a joint- stool, 
the seat of which is higher than the table, are ill-assorted; 
and the best chair to be found any where is that which is 
called the Windsor chair, put out of good company among 
us for twenty years, and very scarce in any part of South 
America till the revolution of 1810 opened the market. 

The absence of wheel-carriages produces at first a sense 
of deficiency without perceiving in what ; but roads must 
precede carriages, and I have repeatedly met on my route 
handsome pieces of artillery lying in a ditch, where they 
had been dragged by infinite labour, and could not be carried 
upon wheels farther. A road was many years ago proposed 
to be carried from Caracas to Laguayra through the Quebra- 
da or chasm of Tipe, a small distance west of Maquiteia, 
which would admit of a fine wagon and coach road with a 
very slight inclination ; some part of it was begun, but it re- 
mains incomplete. A recent proposition has been made to es- 
tablish a rail road there, a mode of transport adapted only to 
short distances, and in the midst of a dense population and 
the arts ; not at all adapted to the position ; but where wagons 
and carts of an improved and suitable form would be infi- 
nitely beneficial ; and these have become, and must every 
day become more necessary in proportion with the inevita- 
ble augmentation of production and commerce. Mr. Alder- 
son, who resides at Petare, seven miles east from Caracas, 
has introduced some excellent carts made for the purpose in 
Philadelphia, and has employed them on his own plantation 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 29 

and business, but it will be some time before he will have 
imitators, such is the force of inveterate habits ; until neces- 
sity or some rival impulse overcomes them. 

Near the east end of Laguayra the main street opens into ah 
ampler breadth, and presents a portly church, remarkable for 
nothing in its architecture, but that, though much more ele- 
vated in its structure than any other building, it appears to 
have remained uninjured by the earthquake of 1812. 

The public fountains, such as are to be found in all the 
principal cities and towns, flow with abundance of limpid 
water, so conducive to cleanliness and health, and which 
many of the principal cities, such as Caracas, San Carlos, 
Truxillo, Merida, and Bogota appear to have been provi- 
dent in securing at the founding of those places, whose 
streets are constantly cleaned and refreshed by living streams 
flowing through the channels of their pavements. 

The celebrated Humboldt has contributed so much more 
than any other traveller to make the curious familiar with the 
southern parts of the new world, that it would appear ungen- 
erous and hazardous to dispute any observations he has 
made. But, under a persuasion that he would not be him- 
self displeased to see his ideas canvassed or his theories dis- 
puted with freedom and good will, I shall not hesitate to 
express my own opinions, though they may not concur with 
his. From what he has said of the temperature of Laguay- 
ra, compared with my own observations there and in other 
parts of the world to which he has referred, I apprehend he 
must have landed at Laguayra under circumstances unfa- 
vourable to an accurate judgment. His stay in Laguayra 
did not amount to more than three or four hours, for he 
landed on the 21st of November, in the evening, (Person. 
Nar. vol. IIL p. 381,) and was at Caracas the same day. 
He was indeed informed by some persons there that the 
yellow-fever had only ceased a few weeks ; and advised not 
to stay, by some one who stayed himself. His account, or 



^0 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

his theory of the heat at that place, are therefore not the re- 
sult of his own observations or sensations, but formed upon 
the records of thermometrical observations of others. It 
may be a sort of philosophical heresy to entertain but little 
dependance on thermometrical data ; though they may serve 
for approximations to general inferences, the inequality and 
disagreement between instruments made and graduated in 
different countries, and between those made by the same 
artist, is such as to justify this incredulity. I have com- 
pared twenty different instruments of the same maker, in or» 
der to serve a friend who wished for the most perfect instru- 
, ments, and am justified in the conclusion I make from that 
experience as well as from residence in some of the warmest 
climates of the globe. We landed at Laguayra the 19th of 
October, and if there could be any material difference in the 
temperature in the period of one month, it must in the or- 
dinary course be warmer in October than in November. 
WcTemained there three days, and in that time I have pre- 
ferred walking, at all hours, to riding, and have felt not so 
much inconvenience in going on foot from Laguayra along 
the paved causeway in front of the arid sierra to Maquiteia, 
than I have experienced in a like distance in Philadelphia in 
June or July. A parasol might be acceptable, but I felt no 
inconvenience without one. At Madras, or Calcutta, or from 
the pier of Batavia, a walk of that distance might be fatal. 
I could not but recollect Batavia as I walked along the mar- 
gin of the sea, but Laguayra is a paradise compared either 
with Madras or Batavia. No white man ventures to walk 
in the mid-day in the Asiatic cities mentioned without a 
chattah, or umbrella, carried by a servant whose business 
it is. 

Besides this experience, the circumstances which are the 
usually ascribed causes of diseases on the coast, do not exist 
at Laguayra. There are neither marshes, stagnant waters, 
nor mangrovcsji to produce, by vegetation and decomposi- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 31 

tion, that foul or mephitic air, which is found productive of 
disease elsewhere : east and west of Laguayra there is a long 
naked strand perpetually cleansed and refreshed by the busy 
action of the surf. There is a strong corroboration of the 
generally attributed cause of disease in the case of some 
changes which took place at Barbaruta, a town of some note 
near Puerto Cabello. This place had been frequently swept 
of its population by disease. The contiguous shore is co- 
vered with marine vegetable productions, a considerable 
space, where this mephitic air was generated, was covered 
with a great portion of excavated soil, which was placed 
there merely to be thrown away. The neighbourhood of 
this spot became salubrious ; while the adjacent shore, co- 
vered with marine vegetation, retained its usual noxious 
atmosphere ; which resembles that at Porto Bello and other 
places on the coast. 

The jealousy of commerce and avarice, which is not con- 
fined to those countries, must have had strong incentives 
under such a monopoly as that exercised by Spain in the 
countries bowed down by her intolerable policy. If any 
excuse could be allowed for this selfish spirit any where, it 
is where commerce was circumscribed, and its business a 
succession of scrambling, intrigue, and corruption. The 
idea could not enter into the conceptions of a people so cir- 
cumstanced, that the spirit of a monopoly is a self destroying 
spirit, or that the extension and augmentation of commerce 
is beyond the power of calculation to fix or measure ; and 
that the prosperity of several parts of a country must, by 
the effect of example, consumption, reciprocal aid, and in- 
tercommunity of exchange, extend, progressively, prosperity 
over the whole. The colonists, under Spain, maintained an 
hostility of provinces and of towns — the government policy 
fomented this division ; and one town defamed the men of 
another, and carried the defamation to nature itself. Thus 
all were held forth as execrable, because each was believed. 



82 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Thus Laguayra, under the influence of Caracas, was held 
forth to be a much worse climate than Puerto Cabello ; and 
the latter, under the influence of Valencia, was misrepresented 
at Laguayra in turn. This spirit has not yet ceased ; the yel- 
low-fever has been reported to prevail by one and the other 
for the mere purpose of diverting consignments from their 
rival, when, in fact, the disease did not exist in either place. 

Travellers who have not visited the tropical regions will, 
however, be alarmed by such considerate friends as Hum- 
boldt took his report from, and caution will be requisite as to 
the regularity of the bodily habit, and abstinence from heating 
drinks, or more than sufficient food ; a secretion of bile more 
than common takes place in warm climates, accompanied by 
head ache, which gentle purgatives dissipate generally, but 
an emetic effectually removes ; and frequent bathing, particu- 
larly the tepid bath, is delightful and conducive to health. 

My observations in Laguayra, and subsequently at Cara- 
cas and elsewhere, have induced opinions differing from 
Humboldt and others, on the great mortality which took 
place at the earthquake of 1812. I do not question the 
data as to the numbers, nor is it so important to the views 
I take, and which 1 shall only glance at here, and dis- 
cuss more at Caracas. The impression on my mind is 
that more injury was produced by the materials of which 
the houses are generally built, than could have happened had 
the houses been constructed of stone. No house of stone 
has been disturbed at Laguayra. The late respectable consul 
of the United States, R. K. Lowry, lived there at the time. 
The house he resided in was constructed of stone ; an addi- 
tion had been made to the stone building, in what is called 
pita^ that is ordinary earth beaten to hardness with ram- 
mers. The additional and fragile part was crumbled to dust 
by the agitation of the earth ; the stone building remained, 
and himself in it, in entire safety. This subject shall be no- 
ticed again. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 33 

The appearance of the two or three officers, whom I saw 
at Laguayra, answered my expectations ; they appeared to 
feel and think like soldiers : my first impressions of the rank 
and file were not so satisfactory. I had arrived too sudden- 
ly, and was called upon by the moment's view to form an 
opinion, which I found upon closer observation and reflex- 
ion erroneous ; an incident of a moment had perhaps super- 
seded my common mode of forming an opinion, by ta- 
king the con after I had given the pro. Passing through the 
postern gate on my walk to Maquiteia, I was accosted by both 
the centinels in the same cadence : " Will the excellent Se- 
fior have the bounty to bestow una realV^ There was none 
of the insolence of mendicity in the supplication ; but an air 
of confident persuasion, which seemed to say they were not 
ashamed to ask, but that it would be a shame for the Sen or to 
deny so small a bounty as una real, I could not but smile 
at the novelty of the occurrence, and a train of ideas rushed 
upon me which brought before my mind's eye a brigade of 
Rohillas and Patans, men of the same mixed variety of com- 
plexions, six feet high, and on whom the tailor and the mili- 
tary equipment- maker had bestowed all that neatness and el- 
egance would require to set off arms and accoutrements, 
which the daily inspection established in the most perfect or- 
der ; I began — or rather rapidly went on to compare the 
sturdy, chubby, broad shouldered, muscular, oval faced, bare 
footed veterans of Colombia, who stood before me ; in their 
platilla pantaloons and jackets, of which the quality could be 
only inferred through the stains of bivouacs, or the soiling of 
their only bed beside the earth, the cow-hide upon which they 
are used to slumber when they have it, and then it is luxury; 
the collars, cuffs, skirt facings of yellow, blue, or red, the ab- 
sence of many buttons without leave ; their leather caps, and 
close cropped, lank, black hair ; their shirt collars open, which 
had been probably washed at some distant time ; but the whole 
apparel soiled ; firelocks and belts that may have had some de- 



U% VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

termined colour, presented such a contrast with the Bengal Se- 
pahis, " in my mind's eye," that out of mere liberality I call- 
ed in a brigade of Madras Sepahis, men of their own stature, 
and took recruits to reconcile the disparity ; I was just dis- 
covering that these soldiers of five feet six inches had, in the 
Mysore campaigns, borne the marches in the ghauts with less 
fatigue, and greater alacrity, than those long legged Hindus- 
tanees, whose heads were so much in the clouds that they 
disdained to look down on those sturdy soldiers ; a gentle 
touch on the arm, and a soft aspiration of Senor ! — put 
the Sepahis to flight— and I began to remonstrate, that it 
was unworthy of soldiers to solicit — and talked of their dig- 
nity, and what was due to themselves — one of them, perhaps 
seeing my hand glide unconsciously to my pocket, asked, in 
a tone perfectly soft and conciliatory, though bearing a sort 
of rebuke — " Is it worth the while of the worthy Seiior to 
hesitate about una real^ with soldiers who have fought the 
battles of Colombia, and who have received no pay for six 
months, because the public treasure has been exhausted in 
the expulsion of the Godas ?" 

It was the logic of nature^ — and a professor of rhetoric 
would have made but a poor hand of it, if he attempted to 
do it better. Whether it was my obvious embarrassment, 
or my attempt to explain in rather imperfect Castilian, that 
produced a smile, I shall not pretend to decide, but, as I drew 
my hand from my pocket, they handled their arms and 
very gravely resumed their posts, and we parted with a bet- 
ter opinion of each other I am sure ; for, as I went along, I 
reviewed my first impressions, and perceiving that I had not 
taken proper ground in judging by the first appearances, I 
brought up my sepahis again for another contrast, and, 
travelling back to their first history, I found them to be not 
the defenders, but the hired enslavers of their country ; far- 
ther, that it was only the difference between seven and eight 
rupees that carried them from beneath the French standard. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 35 

to fight under the British, that they are never vi^ithout the 
amplest accommodations, clothing, subsistence, quarters, 
and pay ; that when they march beyond certain bounds their 
pay is augmented ; and that vast bazars of subsistence, am- 
ple transportation, accompany them in all their marches, and 
that a suspension of pay for three months, would, perhaps, 
dissolve the British dominion. This was my renewed view 
of my six feet Rohillas and Patans, as well as my sturdy 
Tiling-hees and soldiers of the Carnatic. 

But looking once more at those oval, cheerful, contented, 
chubby faces, and the fine symmetry of those forms which 
their worn and tarnished uniforms did not at all conceal, I tra- 
velled back with them also, only twelve years, when called 
from the pluntations of cacao or maize, to the fortress and the 
plain, where to them a flash of gunpowder was as terrific as 
thunder ; see them scarcely trained, without experienced men 
to train them, formed into battalions, performing marches such 
as reduce those of Hannibal and Alexander to the common 
class of military achievements ; see them opposed to the ve- 
terans of Spain, who had but recently fought against the first 
soldiers of the age, the legions of France ; and behold them 
amidst privations and wants, without shoes, clothing, or pay, 
traversing the uninhabited plains, and the more dismal and 
dreary summits of the snow clad Ghisga, encountering and 
conquering those veterans of Spain,- in successive pitched 
battles ; not with the distant cannonade of artillery, nor the 
protracted details of a subtle strategy, but like those of Ma- 
rathon and those of Zama, hand to hand, in close energetic 
conflict : armies at no one point, at any period, exceeding 
four or five thousand men ; and, at the same time, defending 
and vanquishing, at greater distances from their base of ope- 
rations than Paris is from Moscow. It was these men, and 
such men as these, created by liberty and the revolution, 
who were menaced — and the menaces realized vvherever it 
«ould be accomphshed upon the unfortunate captives— who 



36 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

were menaced with extermination— and who, after sustaining 
a conflict of twelve years, have vanquished, destroyed, or 
expelled 43,000 veterans of Spain, who had threatened to 
exterminate them. I gave up the sepahis, the enslavers of 
their country, and reconciled myself to the soldiers of liberty, 
whose valour and whose blood gave independence to that 
world Columbus had discovered. At Valencia I was gratified 
to find, in the grenadiers of Columbia, men, in every per- 
sonal respect, equal to the finest sepahis of India. 

In thus rendering justice to myself, by correcting an er- 
roneous and hasty judgment, I was led to ask if I had not 
sinned in the same way in speaking of Laguayra ; perhaps 
it was only the censure of a passing thought, on seeing the 
port of entry of the beautiful city and rich country of Cara- 
cas, without a safe harbour ; which, at an expense compara- 
tively inconsequent, and by labour, and with materials, per- 
fectly at their command, might be accomplished with more 
ease and eiFect than in any part of the earth, near so important 
a city. But it did not consist with the policy of Spain to 
expend riches on merely commercial improvements. Car- 
thagena, and Puerto Cabello, and Puerto Bello, and St. Juan 
d'Uloa, were but as the gates of a prison by which mo- 
nopoly was to be sustained through force and terror. It 
could not be expected then that the republic, not yet re- 
leased from Spanish inroads, for Morales was then maraud- 
ing on the borders, and menacing Truxillo and Merida, and 
plundering the country near Timothes — for we afterwards 
passed within two miles of the Spanish outposts near Gritja i 
it could not be expected, after twelve years of a desolating 
war, that such an object could yet be proposed or accom- 
plished. But, if the proprietors of estates in the contiguous 
neighbourhood were to inquire into the effect of such a 
harbour, as would defend ships against the worst storms of 
the Caribbean sea, it would be found to be their best inte- 
terest, as it would treble the value of their estates, the de- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 37 

mand for their productions, and multiply their commerce 
tenfold. 



CHAPTER III. 

The causeway leading to Maquiteia— a redan or outpost arid barrack halfway— 
the east side of Maquiteia forms a cove, adapted to form the west jetee of an 
artificial harbour. — Plan of the village — the scite delightful. — Adventure of an 
evening at Maquiteia — musical performance on the lyre of the country — novelty 
of the dancing — civility of the people — a good ear and grace in dancing, uni- 
formly found among all classes — a refresco of fruit presented by these hospit- 
able paisanas — they refuse compensation — delighted with the music. — Cape 
Blanco — effects of the earthquake of 1812 — the notion of a bay formed by 
Capes Codera and Blanco fanciful. — Mules arrive from Caracas — Consul antici- 
pates and provides an arriero — hints to travellers concerning mules, muleteers, 
and alcaldes-^j&aften«'a por force — for a long journey preferable to purchase 
jprime riding mules — it saves money and time. — Prepare for departure — take 
leave of Commandant — innocent manners — fix rendezvous at Maquiteia. — De- 
parture — the zigzag road of Avila — compared with that to Honda by Hum- 
boldt — a different comparison. — Ascend the Torrequemada — to the Salto — the 
Venta Grande — meet Senora Bolivar and friends there — dilemma as to accom- 
modation — relieved by a joke. — Coffee plantation on the Sierra — coffee tree 
described, and husbandry of — fortlet of Cuchilla, reflection produced by it- 
descend by las Vueltas. — The Silla unveiled. — Caracas seen — the first impres- 
sions — fountain on the road. — Enter the barrier of Pastora — ruin and desolation 
all round — street of Carabobo — rendezvous at Senora Antonia's — interesting 
spectacle — Elizabeth remains. — We accept invitation of Dp. Forsyth — meet 
Colonel Todd. 

The causeway which leads from the west end of Laguayra 
to the village of Maquiteia, I compute to be rather more 
than half a mile : it is a spacious platform, formed upon a 
compact and well constructed wall, facing the sea to the 
north, and skirting the steep Sierra on the south side. It is 
about forty feet broad ; and I must apprize the reader that I 
have not measured any thing, because I could not accomplish 
it perfectly, through the breaking of some instruments which 



38 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

I carried with me. All the measures I shall mention, unless 
reference be specially made, must be considered as impres- 
sions on my judgment, from the habit of estimating eleva- 
tion and space by the eye. The causeway yvinds but very 
little, but it expands over a more ample space as Maquiteia 
is approached : the road to Caracas lying in a west direc- 
tion above the south end of Maquiteia, the main street of the 
village is open to that road, and runs north and south, about 
sixty feet broad, to the point of a promontory on which it 
stands, in north and south length perhaps half a mile, of 
which not a third is occupied by the village, and on the up- 
per or southern end, which is more than seventy feet higher 
than the sea, and fifty-six feet higher than the main street of 
Laguayra. 

About half way from Laguayra, a ravine in the Sierra sup- 
plies ^ rivulet which crosses the causeway beneath a well 
built single arch ; and the ground being more elevated here 
than at any other point between the two places, a picket or 
outpost was established formerly. The breastwork of the 
redan, and the platform, all of good stone masonry, remain, 
though now mutilated ; and excellent quarters erected for 
the troops still remained. 

The line of the strand curves off as Maquiteia is ap- 
proached, and the cove forms a segment of a circle ; if a bold 
pier were run out in a line to the north-west from the east ex- 
tremit}'- of Laguayra, this promontory would form a beautiful 
flank to a harbour. The ground plan of Maquiteia is an in- 
clined plane from south to north, where its rocky extremity 
is beaten by the surf. The upper or southern end of Ma- 
quiteia is seventy-six feet above the ocean ; the main street of 
Laguayra about fifteen feet. The scite is delightful, and the 
laying out of a street so spacious and commodious is ascribed 
to Mr. Lowry, the American consul, who then resided there. 
Several houses in the style of the country, and well constructed, 
roomy, and commodious, are erected On that street ; and the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 39 

place promises to be as prosperous as it is delightful. The 
stranger is surprized to find this village, so well adapted for 
a town, overlooked by those sturdy men who abandoned Ca- 
ravellada to defeat a tyrant. 

Several smaller streets are laid out crossing the main street ; 
but the village is most populous on the side of the road lead- 
ing to Caracas, at the upper end. The causeway is a de- 
lightful morning and evening promenade, and the space be- 
ing more open and more detached from the foot of the moun- 
tain than Laguayra, it has become a place of evening retire- 
ment after the business of the day, and, on account of its 
charming atmosphere, a place of delicious repose. 

On one of the delightful evenings spent at the American 
consul's, our seats were in the open air in front of the dwell- 
ing, and as the visitors drew off by degrees in order to enter 
the town before the gates were closed ; and as others retired 
to rest, lieutenant Bache and myself continued to enjoy the 
serenity and beauty of the night. Music of a very spright- 
ly kind attracted our attention, and it became more interesting 
in its successive changes ; we moved in the direction from 
whence it appeared to proceed, without any other purpose than 
to hear more distinctly ; it came from a small house beneath 
the Palmyra palm trees, on the main street, which, as we pass- 
ed, we were invited to enter with great civility, and seats were 
handed to us. The house was occupied by several females, 
and children of both sexes; one of the young women resumed 
her lyre as soon as we were seated, and renewed her interest- 
ing performance. The instrument was of the form, but one- 
third less than the Irish harp, formed of a light wood, resem- 
bling red cedar, but closer grained. After some time the 
younger people stood up to dance, and we were no less, 
amused by the ease and deportment of the dancers than by 
the novelty of its style ; it was a sort of pantomimic dance, 
not in active springs, or figures, or cuts with the feet, but a 
well cadenced pursuit and retreat. Other dances were per- 



40 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

formed by young girls and boys, all in adnriirable time« 
The young person who had first performed handed the 
lyre to another, who commenced with equal execution. 
These were short cantas, and, as usual, patriotic songs, in 
which Bolivar was not overlooked. 

The young womanj who had retired, now entered, with 
some others, carrying excellent and fresh fruit, as she said />or 
refresco : sweet bananas, delicious oranges, and several kinds 
of fruit with which we were not yet acquainted, but of which 
we partook, as they were with unaffected civility handed 
round. 

The dance was renewed, and the first female resumed 
her lyre, and new airs and new dances so won upon our 
time, that it was early before we could overcome our wishes 
to stay and see it out. We rose and tendered compensation 
for our entertainment ; but it was modestly refused, and 
we were informed that the pleasure we manifested to have 
received from their humble music was an ample compensa- 
tion. ■" \: ■■ ,'• ■• 

Whatever may be the superiority of science, over these 
harmonists of nature, I confess my gratification was as full 
and delightful, as any I ever experienced from the best com- 
bined orchestra. Possibly predisposition, time, place, and 
even the unexpectedness of the incidents, may have produced 
a more lively effect, and enhanced the pleasure. I had ample 
opportunities in the course of my journey, to perceive the ge- 
neral aptitude for music and dancing, among all classes and in 
all parts of the country. A uniformly good ear, and the total 
absence of awkwardness in dancing are striking. Upon en- 
quiring concerning the harp, I understood it was a manu- 
facture of the country, and cost no more than five dollars ; 
had I been on my return, I should certainly have procured 
one, were it only as a remembrance of the evening's entertain- 
ment we experienced. 

It was my intention to have visited Cape Blanco, three 
miles west of Maquiteia, but other engagements prevented 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 41 

me. I however learned from the best authority, the parti- 
culars which I shall here narrate. Before the earthquake of 
1812, presented an elevated bluff, on the summit of which 
had been erected a commodious pavilion, which served as 
a beacon to the mariner, an observatory and look-out- house. 
In the earthquake, this pavilion totally disappeared, leaving 
not a fragment to shew where it stood. The cliff appears 
to have opened, and swallowed the pavilion and summit of 
the headland, which now appears sixty feet depressed below 
its former elevation. A long, ledge of rocks, which perched 
above the waves to some height, and to a considerable ex- 
tent, believed to be sixteen hundred yards into the ocean, 
underwent a change also ; the ledge, which before rose above 
the sea, is now beneath the surface, but reveals itself by a 
heavy foaming reef. 

Whatever may have been the influence of its former eleva- 
tion on the fancy, that Cape Blanco and Cape Codera formed 
the horns of a spacious bay, it is a merely metaphorical bay, 
like that of the bay of Bengal, formed by Capes Comorin and 
Malacca, or like the Bay of Biscay. They afford neither 
shelter from storms nor anchorage, within the supposed line 
of their extremities. 

The 21st of October being the day of the arrival of mules 
from Caracas, our friend the consul had saved us the trou- 
ble of going in search of an arriero, or master muleteer, and 
we prepared for our departure the next day. The trans- 
portation of all moveable objects being on mules, the stran- 
ger who has not some friend, such as we had, will do well 
to address himself to some of the resident merchants, whose 
civility and attentions are proverbial ; and whose experience is 
necessary to guard against the knavery of muleteers here, as 
in all parts of the world where they are numerous ; and against 
which a perusal of Gil Bias will furnish some instructive ex- 
amples and precautions in relation to them throughout the 
country. In all the cities, towns, and villages, the established 

6 



42 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

usages, which are law, require of the civil, or military autho- 
rity to direct the supply of mules, and it is the practice every 
where, unless the traveller upon a prudent calculation finds it 
more advantageous, as. we did, to purchase mules at a high 
price, rather than risque the delays incident to the customary 
practices of muleteers, wherever they are sure of impunity. In 
Laguayra, the merchant having it in his power to employ the 
muleteers, whom he requires for the carriage of his merchan- 
dize, holds an influence which the muleteer will not abuse; 
as he might, if the stranger made his own bargain, without 
knowledge of the language or customs. Where the alcalde is 
applied to in a city or a town, he issues his orders, but the 
traveller bargains for the price of the mule, for a distance 
named. If the muleteer be exorbitant, an appeal to the al- 
calde brings him to the accustomed rate of charge. But it 
sometimes happens on a long journey ^ — that the alcalde will 
be himself the covered owner : and where he is not, being 
only a mere man, subject to the same surly temper, ill na- 
ture, or false idea of his own consequence, and he may 
sport with the patience, or laugh at the resentment of the 
person whom he wantonly injures, merely because he can 
do so. In every country there is some custom, some abuse 
to complain of, insolent, or negligent, or disobliging coach- 
men or boatmen, for which the remedy is often as bad as 
the disease ; in Colombia there is this perversity among 
muleteers and alcaldes, but I must acknowledge, I heard 
more of it from others, than I experienced myself — and on 
the few occasions, which happened to me, I had learned, 
among other wise saws, the Spanish proverb patiencia por 
force, and as a good appetite requires a good look-out before 
dinner, I learned not to fret when I found some of these ill- 
natured folks, likely to derive amusement from my re- 
sentment, and I recommend this course to other travellers. 
I also recommend the purchase of good mules rather than a 
dependance upon hire, where the journey exceeds five hun- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 43 

dred miles, because, as you may have to feed the mules you 
hire, and they are changed at short stages, the hire soon 
amounts to the price of a mule, while if you feed your own 
mule well, you have all the benefit in the journey, and you will 
obtain a better price for your mule when you part with him. 

We paid our respects to the commandant and Sefiora Bo- 
livar on the 21st, and to other friends in town. In our 
visit to the commandant, we had the pleasure of an introduc- 
tion to his lady and a venerable matron, her mother, whom 
we found engaged at their needle work. The customs of 
every nation are the criterion of their own morals, which 
ought not to be judged by customs which differ from them, 
and are seldom more nor less moral one than the other. The 
lady of the commandant had playing at her feet a fine boy 
of about two years old. We were objects of curiosity to 
him, and his mother placed his hand in mine, and he was 
soon mounted on my knee ; he was stark naked. Some 
prudish people would reprobate this, and certainly I should 
prefer our own customs ; but Swift says " delicate people 
have nasty ideas," and I offer no other commentary ; it was 
no proof of false delicacy in the mother, for she had been so 
educated, and those who cannot stand the shock of such 
customs, should not visit any part of Asia or South America, 
where the nudity of a child carries no idea of indecorum. 

We made the rendezvous of our friends for four o'clock 
in the morning, at Maquiteia, where we slept : and at the 
appointed hour, after taking some chocolate, which our good 
Philadelphia friend, Mrs. Lowry, had taken care to have 
prepared, we took our leave, and moved off in a gay ca- 
valcade for the Sierra Avila. It is a custom of the country 
for friends to come out to meet and to escort, on departure, 
those whom they esteem or respect. 

Humboldt's description of the road from Laguayra over 
the Sierra Avila to Caracas, leaves very little to be said by 
those who follow him over the same space, and if his works 



44! VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

were likely to be in every hand through which this produc? 
tion is likely to pass, it need be no more than noticed ; but 
as different persons may view the same objects differentlyj 
or find objects that may have been overlooked, I shall use 
the manner of his diagrams to show the elevation of the 
mountains, and describe places only as I saw them. 

Humboldt, in illustrating the steepness of this passage, 
states it to be infinitely finer than that between Bogota and 
Honda, which might lead the reader to suppose there was 
some resemblance, or some road leading to Honda. The 
onl} resemblance is that of steepness ; but that of Caracas^ 
besides being only fifteen miles, and over an elevation of 
6000 feet; whereas the distance to Honda from Bogota 
is about 84 miles from an elevation of 8000 feet. The 
Caracas road is paved in an excellent manner ; only about 
seven miles on the Bogota plain is paved, the residue of 
the route, not road, for in fact art or labour has done no- 
thing to make a road ; it is a path wrought by the hoofs of 
the patient mule, where it is not a ravine or a declivity dug 
out of the rocky sides of the Sierra Trigo and Sargente, 
where, excepting a gap or pass through the narrow crest 
of a ridge, man has done nothing. On the Caracas road 
there is no sort of danger, nor is the inconvenience of 
ascending or descending serious, as the road, besides being 
well paved, is cut into traverses, zigzag, which, though 
giving length to the course, make the ascent gradual and 
easy. This is not the character of the route to Honda, of 
which the descent is 7130 feet ; and, whether ascending or 
descending, it is more prudent to climb or to crawl than to 
attempt riding or jumping from rock to rock. 

There is some pleasure too in ascending the Sierra Avila, 
as the scenes around are sublime, and open, without the 
necessity of watching the steps of the mule, to the constant 
observation of the traveller. The pavement, in some parts 
of the ascent where we passed, had been broken up and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 45 

in need of repair ; I learn that the width of the road has 
been since increased, some of the traversing lines better 
graduated, and the whole put into a perfect state of repair. 
To the mere traveller it is a delightful march ; to the inte- 
rests of commerce, a road through Tipe would contribute 
more to the interests of the city and the plantations too. 

The road to Caracas, before the ascent is commenced, 
leads rather to the south of west, and after passing about a 
mile, the obscurity of a strait and a broad travelled track 
appears to be a continuance in the same western direc- 
tion, it is indeed the royte, lately completed, by the valley 
of Tipe, which intrepid horsemen sometimes prefer to the 
mountain road. At this point we turned to the left, and 
commenced the ascent, which continued over spaces of fifteen 
to twenty yards length ; leading first to the south-east, then 
winding south-west, and so alternately, one side or the other 
to the ascent. The first range of ascent is over rocks, the 
Torrequimada, or the burnt tower, why so named, is uncer- 
tain ; above this rocky range the road appears like a flat 
ditch, cut out of a whitish clayey soil, which shews the 
marks of the spade or instrument with which the sides were 
cut ; it was in this range, which is much more steep than 
that previously ascended, that the pavement was broken; 
the clay bore the indenting of the mule's track, and where 
it was moist was slippery ; the traverses here were, besides 
being more steep, much shorter; and, this is the space, 
which, from a plantation on the west side of this ascent, is 
called Curucuti : this ascent overcome, which is the onlv 
part at all unpleasant, the ascent is less steep, the road more 
commodious, and the pavement in perfect repair. The 
next stage gained is denominated the Salto^ or leap, a singu- 
lar appearance or opening in the mountain, about thirty feet 
broad at the summit, and diminishing, in the shape of a 
wedge, to 60 feet below. Over this chasm a drawbridge 
had been placed during the war, and a strong picket guard 



46 ¥ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

established ; the machinery for raising the platform has dis- 
appeared with the military guard, leaving the platform per- 
manent. A redan of good masonry, with a firm platform, 
remains upon the brow of the declivity, on the south side of 
the bridge, which is an usual halting place on account of the 
grandeur and beauty of the prospect. The steep which is 
overlooked by the battery, is a tremendous ravine, broken 
and wild, but covered with verdure, as far as the eye can 
discern, to its lowest depth ; the opposite side is less steep, 
and woody, so that the peasants have cleared numerous 
patches, upon which the coftee an(^ the cacao are seen in 
minute distinctness, and the garden and the plantain patch 
around the thatched cottages. Looking to the north, the 
ocean is spread out, and, apparently, beneath the feet, the 
ships, not larger than their buoys, appear playing upon the 
resdess but glittering wave. Maquiteia is distinctly seen, in 
its whole extent, and its palm trees diminished to the size 
of a honeysuckle. On the west side the mountain is not so 
steep, it is wooded to its base, only where husbandry has- 
substituted plantations of coffee trees, and their beautiful 
companions, bananas, which are always planted on the sunny 
side of the coffee tree, to mitigate the fervour of a too ardent 
sun, by its beautiful leaves of six and eight feet in length, 
by three to four in breadth, of a refreshing pea-green. The 
coffee plantations on the side of this steep are objects of cu- 
riosity to the traveller, especially who has not been before 
within the tropics ; the presence of springs of limpid water 
are indicated by the presence of a coffee plantation, as they 
do not thrive without it. Here a spring, trickling from a 
more lofty position, is conducted in rills along the sides of 
the mountain, above the upper line of trees, and having gained 
the extremity, retraces its course above another range, placed 
lower down, and so to the lowest range. The coffee tree 
was now in its full bloom and ripeness, exhibiting conical 
forms of about six feet diameter ; at two feet from the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 47 

ground, the branches extending horizontally like radii from 
the centre stem, which rises to eight or nine feet high, where 
the tops are split and a small wedge placed in them : expe- 
rience having taught that the fruit is better and more abun- 
dant, when the tree is thus stunted. The branches were 
loaded, like the arms of an Oriental beauty, with beads of eve- 
ry tint, from the palest green to emerald, yellow topaz, from 
these to the rose and all its shades and hues, to crimson, 
and the deepest ruby red, " last stage of all," a confirmed 
chocolate brown, the sign of ripeness, and warning to the 
delicate finger where to pick. The fruit grow from the 
bark like beads, on the prolongation of the branch, of the 
size and shape of a cranberry ; where the husbandry is good, 
the work of collecting the ripe fruit is performed by young 
persons, who, with delicate finger, learn to pick only those 
that are ripe, place them in small baskets, and, at stated pe- 
riods, carry them to the station where the process of prepa- 
ration is completed. 

Having satisfied curiosity, and had some little, though 
not indispensible rest, we continued our route, through 
natural hedges, and some scattered, but lofty forest trees, 
and it was eight o'clock when we reached the Venta Grande, 
or principal inn, more than 3800 feet above the sea. Here 
we unexpectedly found our friend Seiiora Antonia and her 
suite, and several friends who had come from Caracas to com- 
pliment her on her arrival. The Fenta Grande was not suffi- 
cient to contain us all ; but the air was exquisitely exhilarat- 
ing, and it was more agreeable abroad than in the crowded 
house. The good lady had determined to surprise us, and 
give us a fresh example of the hospitality and courtesy of 
the country. I had addressed the posadera with a view to 
obtain breakfast for my party, but she had her lesson, and 
told me she had nothing to sell that day ; at first I thought 
it was my defective scholarship in Castilian ; but Scnora 
Antonia^ who had anticipated my object, continued the joke, 



48 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

assuring me, significantly, that money could procure nothing 
there — and then added, but there is plenty of chocolate, 
coffee, fruit, sweetmeats, cake, and wine, and pointed to the 
other ladies already busy. I was here introduced to several 
of her friends, and she renewed the intimation, before made, 
that Elizabeth must be the guest of Josephine while she 
staid at Caracas. 

We were soon on our way to the Cumbre, or summit of 
the mountain, yet nearly 1000 feet above us ; our progress 
was not hurried, as the company was now very numerous, 
and formed into little squads for conversation ; several ladies 
had joined, of course there was much lively prattle and 
gaiety, which rarely prevails where they are not ; passing 
several cottages, and the Venta of Goyavo on the Cumbre, 
where the muleteers were feeding their animals or themselves, 
we had reached the Summit before the Silla had yet cast off 
its gauzy veil of clouds, in which it is concealed in the 
morning, and casts it off as the sun attracts it from the south 
in the forenoon. We passed a little fortlet called Cuchilla, 
placed on a point more elevated than our road. It had been 
established to guard the passes and paths which the adven- 
turous paisanos had found out during the existence of a 
military post at the Salto. The vicissitudes of human life 
were brought to mind by this fortlet of Cuchilla : while the 
war prevailed, and it was necessary to protection, it was 
visited by the passing traveller ; it Was now passed with a 
casual and indifferent glance ; like the soldier of the revolu- 
tion, whose battles and whose blood had purchased inde- 
pendence, and destroyed his own vocation ; he is passed by 
with indifference or disregard, by men who bowed obse- 
quiously to him, while there was danger. 

Our road, which had been so long zigzag, was now wind- 
ing, and shaded by lofty forest trees ; and at length the de- 
scent became perceptible, as we emerged from the shade ; 
the mountains in the south were revealing their summits, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 49 

range beyond range ; and the Silla stood exposed in naked 
majesty, having just cast off her veil, which was flaunting to 
the south-west on a breeze, in the glare of the sunbeams. 
We were now on las Vueltas, or the back of the mountain, 
and descending eastward on a slope on the prolongation of 
its side, with a steep precipice on our right ; and the city of 
Caracas broke upon the view, and the whole west of the 
valley. It was prudent not to proceed, on the vergeof such 
a steep, for to see and proceed too appeared dangerous ; and 
I accordingly halted to contemplate one of the most beauti- 
ful and interesting spectacles that probably is to be found on 
earth, lest passing it I should lose it and my first impres- 
sions for ever. We unconsciously resort to comparisons in 
order to strengthen and embody our ideas ; my first impres- 
sion carried me to that bird-eye picture of Babylon which 
many years ago I had seen as an embellishment of the Uni- 
versal History. Caracas, with its greatest streets descending 
from the north or mountain foot, to the south and lowest 
part of the valley, presented beyond a trembling light, such 
as would be shown by a stream of quicksilver flowing through 
a transparent tube, sparkling and playing with the sunbeams 
as it passed sensibly from west to east : it was the Guayra 
river, which has its sources in the valley between the moun- 
tain of Higuerota and Los Teques. The descending streets 
are crossed at right angles, and run east and west, forming 
manzanas, or blocks of buildings, of about 260 to 300 feet 
on each face ; the streets not more than twenty-five feet broad, 
some only twenty. The brightness of the hour displayed 
the streets very distinctly by their shadows ; and buildings 
more elevated than the dwellings were defined by their light 
and shade. In the west, in the south, and in the east, the 
verdure and the harvests were brilliant ; the field of yellow 
sugar cane ; the lighter and changeable tints of the waving 
barley ; the grave green of the maize patch ; orchards of 
orange, not yet distinguishable but by their clumps arid 



50 YISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

grouping. On the right bank of the Guayra, below the ciiyj, 
the hills rose gradually, clothed in verdure to the tops; at a 
point a little to the eastward of the point of view, a curious 
sport of nature arrests the stranger's eye. It is a range of 
mounds, of such a form as that they seem to be rather the 
work of human labour than natural. They appear like a 
range of spacious caserns or warehouses, with angular roofs, 
the line of length ascending ; and their gavel ends also coped 
like their sides towards the city, and all covered with a rich 
velvet verdure. The city was still 2000 feet beneath me, and 
when I had finished my contemplation, my company had de- 
scended far below me. I hastened along the now more gra- 
dual -descent, and as I had read of Elfuetite de Sanchorquiz 
4600 feet above the sea, I stopt to test the freshness of its 
waters, and found it limpid, and, as the day was not cold, 
placed in a very excellent position to slake the thirst of the 
traveller. 

I joined my friends when they were entering the barrier 
or gate of Pastora, where there was a custom-house. The 
desolation around from the earthquake is here more conspi- 
cuous than in any other place. It is at the north-west angle 
and most elevated part of the sloping plain on which the 
city stands ; the greatest inclination is to the South-east, but 
it inclines also, though not so much, to the east and south. 
The breadth of the plain north and south appeared to me 
about three and a half miles, it may be more ; looking to the 
westward, the ground appears to rise in that direction, and 
to be more depressed as the eye follows the course of the 
Guayra to the valley of Chacao, through the rich plantations 
which the eye distinguishes, to the village of Petare, seven 
miles east. 

We turned off to the east, after passing the gate of Pasto- 
ra, and entered the street of Carabobo, which descends south, 
and about noon, at the desire of Seiiora Antonia, rendez- 
voused at her casa ; we found abundant refreshments, and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. SI 

had an opportunity to witness the cordial greetings of friends, 
and the prevailing manners. It was really a charming spec- 
tacle, to behold this good lady surrounded by crowds of 
friends of both sexes, old and young, congratulating her on 
her return to her native city. The liveliness of the younger 
senoritas and the solemnity of the senoras, the peculiar em- 
brace of the matrons, the inquisitiveness of the young, and 
the assiduous suavity of the sedate ecclesiastic, in his black 
silk cassock and his broad brimmed hat ; the curiosity of the 
females about the North American young lady ; and the vi- 
vacity which pervaded the whole concourse in the spacious 
hall, was altogether a spectacle of which no form of expres- 
sion can convey a distinct idea. 

It was finally settled that Elizabeth should remain with 
her young friend ; and, at the invitation of Dr. Forsyth, an 
American merchant, long a resident there, Lieut. Bache and 
myself took quarters at his house, where he had previously 
ordered our baggage ; and where we were gratified to find 
Colonel Todd, the American ambassador ad interim^ and 
his secretary, Mr. R. Adams, of Richmond, Virginia, who 
had been here some time, and were already preparing to pro- 
ceed for Bogota. 



62 



CHAPTER lY. 

Military music — excellent throughout the country — the Intendant Soublette— 
the office of Intendant unknown till introduced by Galvez — in 1777— imitation 
of France — functions — more extensive than under monarchy — no Intendan- 
cies in New Granada nor in Chili, and why — convenient during the war- 
anecdotes of General Soublette — rises by merit — of Bolivar's staff — distin- 
guished at Cojede — defeats the Spanish General La Torre — difficulties of the 
station of Intendant in the revolution — his happy success and promptitude, is 
appointed Secretary of War in 1824. — Distinguished patriot families — Cle- 
mente — Tovar — Toro, &c. — First impressions of the city — streets — an inclined 
plane from north-west to south-east — Plaza Mayor — Valley of Chacao and 
plain of Petare. — Rivers — ravines — aqueducts destroyed by earthquake of 
1812. — Pubhc fountains excellent — custom of drawing water — bridges-— 
church of Candelaria a heap of rubbish — 'bridge — city cleanly— pavements in 
the streets, gateways, and patios— excellent workmanship. — No side paths in 
Caracas — all round stone pavement — extended to the roads — an ingenious 
mode of improving a ravine without a bridge — Oriental style in all public 
works and private dwellings. — Interior of houses — style of building — materials 
—mortality of 1812, principally owing to materials called pita — process of 
building. 

Wherever there are military bodies and discipline, 
they are sure to make themselves heard. "While at break- 
fast the first, morning after my arrival, my attention was at- 
tracted by the distant but approaching sound of *' the spirit 
stirring drum and the ear piercing fife," whose clamorous 
concord became every instant more distinct and animating, 
I had supposed this kind of sympathy had long passed away ; 
I could hear the assemhlee or even the generale beat, without, 
perhaps, any more emotion than if it was a solo on a jew's- 
harp ; but here were anxiety and strong throbs, which led 
me at once to the street whence the sound appeared to pro- 
ceed, and I once again felt an interest in the 



-" Drum's sonorous sound 



Parading round, and round, and round.'" 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 53 

Imagine a corps of twenty-four, half fifes, half drums, 
with their drum- major, in German or Frenqh style, and his 
staff of office, leading them in files of six in front, occupy- 
ing the whole breadth of the street, and pacing down the 
hill at more than quick-time : drums of better tone 1 had 
never heard, and the fifes were equally good ; but the style 
of the subject^ the novelty, the vivacity, cannot be described ; 
a better musician would put the beats on a stave, and beat 
it off again ; but I put it unpremeditatedly into English syl- 
lables — which, however, they may impress the reader, con- 
tinue to speak the language of the drum to me— in this 
way, with a prelude of a half ruffie and a drag — R-r-r- 
ump'm, and bump'm, and blump'm, and stump'm, and 
thump'm, and blumb — R-r-r-and thump'm, and stump'm, 
and plump'm, and plump'm and blum — Da Capo. The 
excitement of the moment bi-ought to mind the song of 
Frederick I. of Prussia, " O mine got, vot blud ^d tonder." 
The motion was so rapid and the sounds so much in con- 
cord, that I thought nothing would be better adapted to 
arouse the feelings ; the beating, to speak technically, was 
so bold and intelligible. Our military music, within the 
United States, is, generally speaking, so dull and execrable, 
and our marching so much in the time of the 104th psalm, 
such as was in fashion when soldiers wore a coat of long 
square skirts and slash sleeves, and a KevenhuUer-hat, with 
such a tail as the monkeys on the Magdalena wear at this 
day ; with a bandolier ; a long matchlock, and a crutch 
to rest his piece upon, before locks were invented. Our 
usual morning and evening beats are better adapted to put 
men to sleep than to put them in motion. During the late 
war there were a few officers and fewer regiments who had 
ideas of military music ; but with the peace it began to tra- 
vel backward, and is now half a century behind the world : 
perhaps so it may be in Colombia when military talents shall 
be no longer necessary, and the establishment becomes a 



S4 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

provision for men who could not gain a livelihood in any 
other way. 

I was induced to visit the parade where the different 
guards were turned off, and found the band of wind instru- 
ments were equal to the drums. Indeed, the excellence of 
the military music pervades the country. I had the satisfac- 
tion of forming an acquaintance with many of the officers, 
native and foreign, who were well disposed to be communi- 
cative. I was introduced by them to the Intendant General 
Soubiette, to whom it is the etiquette to be made known, 
and took the opportunity to request his naming a day when 
I might wait on him on business, which he accordingly did. 
I had frequent opportunities of seeing him in public and pri- 
vate afterwards ; and to form a high opinion of his capacity 
and talents. 

The office of Intendant, under the Republic^ differs from 
that which belonged to it under the Spanish regime. It was 
not known in any part of America till about 1777, when, at 
the instance of Galvez, a minister much celebrated in Spa- 
nish American history, the office was created, in imitation 
of and with corresponding functions as the Intendancies of 
France. Their duties were intended to be purely fiscal or 
financial; they were also intended as a check upon the ra- 
pacity which had prevailed, in consequence of the unity of 
power in the Viceroys and Captains-general ; who, upon the 
institution of Intendancies, were reduced to the charge of the 
political and military administration ; and as the Intendant's, 
authority was co-extensive in fiscal affairs with the political 
and military authority of the Captains-general, he exercised 
his functions by deputies in the subordinate provinces ; and 
without the Intendant's concurrence no expenditure could 
be made; the nomination also to all offices under his au- 
thority was in him. In noticing the new institutions, this 
analogy might be imperfectly understood, if the old were not 
referred to ; and it is very evident already, that in the new 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 55 

organization of the intendancies, which are now extended to 
each of the 12 greater territorial departments, the union of the 
civil and military authority with the fiscal, as was the case be- 
fore the reign of Charles III, the same room for abuse exists, 
and if the institution of the intendancies was really remedial, 
the disease must necessarily be supposed to be restored 
by the reunion of the functions. It is no more than proper 
however, to remark, that in that part of the Colombian repub- 
lic, formerly the Viceroyalty of New Granada, no Intendan- 
cy was ever established : the venerable viceroy Caballero y 
Gongora, who was also archbishop, who was in personal con- 
fidence and correspondence with Charles III, signified that 
he must decline the Viceroyalty, if an Intendancy was to be 
imposed on his government ; and he explicitly stated that their 
only effect would be to multiply the oppression of the people, 
already too much harassed under the multitude of the officers 
already existing ; and New Grenada, and Chile, through like 
representations, were not burthened with Intendancies, 

A station uniting all the powers of government which a 
desire to preserve unity and simplicity under the fluctuating 
progress of events in the Revolution, like the temporary adop- 
tion of the Spanish codes, where not replignant to freedom, 
was a very delicate and difficult task, and the appointment of 
general Soublette must be considered as no light testimony 
of the opinion entertained of his qualifications by those who 
appointed him. 

General Soublette is a native of Caracas, of French descent, 
and born in the proper time and place to develop his quali- 
fications and arrive at eminence. The revolution, at its open- 
ing, was full of hazard and uncertainty, difficulty and peril ; 
but he, with the generosity and sanguine temper of youth, 
left those considerations out of view ; obeyed the impulse of 
the age, and entered the ranks of the army, when about six- 
teen or seventeen years old, a soldier of liberty and his coun- 
try. His original destination appears to have been for a 



56 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

mercantile life, and the habits of order and calculation, ac- 
quired in the few years he was in that pursuit, have not been 
disadvantageous to him. In military service he was soon 
distinguished, and placed in charge of a company, and his 
activity and talents, in some arduous campaigns, obtained 
for him the notice and the confidence of Bolivar ; for a time 
he was at the head of the staff, and in the sanguinary conflict 
at Coxede, earned the rank of General of brigade. In this 
character he commanded a corps of observation, and though 
the meeting was so sudden, as to aflford no leisure to make 
dispositions, he gained a complete victory over the Spanish 
General la Torre, who had succeeded in command in Vene- 
zuela after Morillo had negociated his escape. 

General 'Soublette stands about five feet eleven inches, 
erect, slender, and easy in his port. His countenance is 
good, and eye quick and inquisitive ; his manner unconstrain- 
ed, and courteous ; his public functions are performed 
with scrupulous punctuality, and his attendance on religious 
duties regular, which has silenced many pious enemies of 
the revolution, and sustained its ecclesiastical friends. He is 
married to a lady as elegant in her manners as himself, and 
they iiave some children. 

In the station of Intendant, he had a difficult and serious 
trust to fulfil ; as the whole of the functions of government 
devolved on him, when the constitution was not yet formed, 
and his own judgment was to supply the place of a definite 
system. . Besides the skill requisite. to conduct aifairs at any 
time, he required moderation and firmness ; he had to guard 
against insidiousness of pretended patriots, and the jealousy 
of local self-love, in friends to the revolution, who had not 
yet conquered all those prejudices of education, which asso- 
ciate the ideas of office with cast. But he was always prepa- 
red, ready, and effective, in each department alike, of finance, 
war,, and commerce, to an extent rarely found united in one 
man, in any country. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 67 

I had opportunities of learning much private history, and 
Some secret, in whic*h his capacity was not less conspicu- 
ous than in public, and as in every revolution, and indeed 
in every popular government, parties and passions produce 
conflicts and discolour actions, embarrassing to the public 
functionary, his constancy, and the confidence of Bolivar, suc- 
ceeded much better in the government of Venezuela, than 
any of his predecessors, and whoever he may be that may 
follow, will be fortunate if he succeed as well. 

In 1824 he was appointed to a command in the west, and 
more recently called to Bogota, to hold the charge of the War 
Department, on which he has made already a very able report. 

The family of General Lino Clemente, whom I had the 
pleasure of knowing in Philadelphia, I found the same amia- 
ble circle in prosperity, that characterised their exile and ad- 
versity, and was received by them with the same modest and 
unaffected kindness. The general was absent on public du- 
ty, but his good and lovely lady in his absence performed 
the duties of the head of the family ; I have seen her, with 
her lovely daughter, without any superiors in beauty or grace 
in the ball room ; and the next day, superintending and direct- 
ing the operations of the coffee plantation, with the same 
interesting care and alacrity ; every thing in motion, with- 
out any appearance of bustle or the care of business. 

I had the pleasure of waiting on the venerable patriot Mar- 
tin Tovar, whose brothers, whose venerable wife, and inter- 
esting daughters, suffered so much from their devotion to 
the revolution. The history of their sufferings and forti- 
tude, which has happily triumphed, would form an interest- 
ing volume ; I prefer not to touch here what has been made 
known to me by several friends, lest I should not do it jus- 
tice, and above all lest I should inadvertently commit some 
mistake which might for even a moment give any of those 
estimable people a moment's pain. I may, however, give a 
short sketch of his public character in a subsequent chapter. 

8 



58 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

It would be occupying too much space to detail visits of 
this kind, which go no farther in illustrating manners and 
the face of the country, to which, whatever I narrate, will 
be found to have some reference. A few days' residence 
enabled me to become acquainted very generally, and with 
the city and environs. On our entrance from the Sierra 
Avila, the attention was engrossed by too many objects to 
notice any distinctly. Besides that the streets were none 
of them more than twenty -five feet broad, many were 
marked on the fronts by horizontal lines of the three colours, 
blue, red, and yellow, which compose the Colombian flag 
and the military cockade ; and, as the first street we entered 
was named Carabobo, from the signal victory obtained at 
that place, I found that the streets generally had undergone 
a similar revolutionary change, among which were Coxede, 
from another battle, le Calle de la Republica, de Libertad, 
Colombiano, and Bolivar, &c. The fronts of many houses 
bore inscriptions in the same spirit and colours, as Viva 
Bolivar, Viva Colombia, and many others. Some ac- 
counts I had read, I know not where, had led me to expect 
hills, or abrupt ascents and descents, in the city ; but, un- 
less it be the general inclination of the place, the greatest in- 
clination from the north-west angle to the south-east, and a 
lateral inclination east and south, I could discover none. 
Conceive a chequer-board elevated at one corner, the posi- 
tion of the plain of Caracas may be conceived ; and as the 
height of the gate of Pastora is computed at four hundred 
feet above the Guayra on the south side, and the Plaza 
Mayor or Great Square, which is about midway, inclining 
to the south-east of the gate of Pastora, is two hundred feet 
above the Guayra, and the space better than three miles, 
the slope may be conceived. The ground to the west is 
not more elevated than the plain of the city to some extent, 
beyond which there is a gradual rise, though not to the ele- 
vation of a mountain or a hill ; and from the lowest angle. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 59 

the level line, or nearly level line of the valley of Chacao is 
perceptible, but not very distinctly beyond the village of 
Petare, which is distinguished by an elevated white object, 
which, seen from the distance, appears like a monument or 
obelisk, distant about seven miles. The length of the val- 
ley is variously estimated at from fourteen to twenty miles ; 
this variation may arise from a difference in the points of 
commencing and ending. 

The city is crossed from north to south by three streams, 
and every stream is called a rio or river. They have their 
sources in the Sierra, and though their streams are unequal 
in volume at different seasons, they are never wholly dry. 
The Caragoata is the most westward, and its bed bearing 
all the marks of its occasional fulness and violence in its 
deep and wild furrowed channel, and steep clayey banks ; it 
separates the quarter of St. Juan from the rest of the city, 
and winding near the lower part of its course, to the east- 
ward of south, soon falls into the Guayra. Over the ra- 
vine there is a spacious and well constructed bridge, of 
very venerable fashion, but of good workmanship in the fa- 
brication, with buttresses, and a battlement massy enough 
to sustain a torrent of tenfold magnitude. The streets ap- 
proach this ravine, but it is not to be seen without descend- 
ing into it, and then, unless the lofty Silla, nothing is to 
be seen but its torrent-torn banks, or its bed composed of 
rounded stones. This bridge is made memorable, as is ihe 
ravine, and elevation west of it called Mount Calvary, by 
conflicts in the revolution, in which the gallant daring of 
General Bermudez is spoken of with merited admiration. 
The bridge is as broad as any of the streets, arid the dwel- 
ling houses advance to the battlements on each side. 

The rio Catuche issues from the Sierra more to the east- 
ward, and is the source from which the public fountains are 
all supplied, as were the private dwellings before the earth- 
quake. Many of the houses yet receive a feeble rill, whose 



m VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

pipes have not been wholly destroyed. The pipes of con«' 
veyance were of pottery, well made, and very sufficient for 
all ordinary purposes, and might have stood for ages, had 
they not been disturbed by the agitation of the earth. The 
fountams which serve the public are built of well- wrought 
chisseled srone, and 1 did not hear that any of them was 
disturbed : the stream is constant, and the water limpid. 

Those fountains are among the few good things for which 
Colombia is indebted to the Spaniards, and the principal 
cities and towns from Laguayra to Bogota are adorned and 
benefited by them. They are generally constructed in the 
same style and of like materials, though not of uniform mag- 
nitude, nor of the same laboured workmanship j but a de- 
scription of one will give a good idea of them all. A base 
of hewn stone, often a single block, of six to eight feet 
diameter, generally of an octagon form, risies about three 
and a half feet above a platform which is ascended by two or 
three steps ; on the upper face of this base or pedestal is 
scooped a trough or bason, from the centre of which rises a 
shaft or column, capped with some object, an urn or the 
like ; beneath this cap, or capital, there is a collar or mould- 
ing corresponding in place with the astragal on an architec- 
tural column, but projecting more ; this collar is perforated, 
and tubes issue from its circumference, through which the 
water, conveyed along the central shaft, issues in abundant 
gushing rills perhaps five or six feet above the platform, 
which descend into the bason beneath ; the overflowings of 
these issue to the centre of the streets, and serve to keep 
the gutters constantly clean. 

It is amusing to see the crowd which, at particular hours, 
come to these fountains, generally women ; though there are 
men who make a livelihood of water-carrying. The women 
bring an earthen pot which may contain three or four gallons ; 
if the crowd be great round the bason from which the pots are 
Blled, with a tiirtnma, or cup_^made of a calabash, those whoj 



VISIT T€J COLOMBIA. 61 

rather than wait, or be jostled out of their turn, bring a tube 
of bamboo, the calibre of which is equal to that of the tube 
in the collar of the fountain ; one end of this tube is held to 
the fountain above, which it closes, and the water issues into 
the pot or jar ; the carrier bears her tube away for another 
occasion, and it is a customary domestic utensil preserved 
for this purpose. Some of these fountains have an outer 
wall or battlement to the platform, handsomely wrought, 
with imitation pannel-work and styles, a vase, and skirting 
and capped surbase ; which answer the purposes of orna- 
ment, and prevent excessive crowds. 

There are five bridges of diiferent degrees of workman- 
like merit, but all of the utmost utility, across the Catuche ; 
there may be more, but I did not see them ; these and other 
bridges have suffered by the war, but the time cannot be 
now remote, when the restoration of useful and ornamental 
public works will engage the attention of the public authori- 
ties 

The Anuco supplies all the eastern part of the city with 
water. Where this stream approaches the once lofty church 
of Candelaria, the pious, who, like the Greeks and Romans, 
personified every stream and tree, have consecrated the 
Anuco by transferring to it the name of Candelaria ; but the 
once lofty church is now a heap of dust, a living grave 
prostrated by the earthquake of 1812, and burying in the 
earth of its proud and cumbrous walls, the unhappy beings 
who expected to find in it a refuge. The revolution too 
has had influence on the flexibility of the beautiful Castilian 
language, by introducing a disposition to laconism, and call 
things by their right names ; the river is once more gene- 
rally called by its pagan name of Anuco. The pious, how- 
ever, have been successful in sanctifying the contiguous 
bridge, which, not being a pagan edifice, is called the bridge 
of Candelaria. If good taste, public benefit, and skill, were 
objects of canonization, the builder ought to have a niche 



6^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

among the saints, for, besides its light and handsome struc- 
ture, it unites the plain of Chacao, on the east, to the city on 
its west side : before the erection of this bridge, the bed of 
the Anuco was, at this place, a deep, wild ravine, like the 
upper part of the Caraguata,-^ — tradition says, impassable 
at some seasons, and in a Catholic country we must believe 
tradition : it is now not merely a safe, but a pleasant bridge 
to travel over, at all seasons, in this delicious climate. 

There is a fountain at an adjacent village, a mile distant, 
which supplies water, said to have peculiar medicinal quali- 
ties, but I did not see it. 

Besides the domestic benefits of those rios and the foun- 
tains they supply, their streams furnish supplies to sur- 
rounding plantations, to which their contributions are con- 
ducted by little mounds and banks of earth, which bespeak 
sagacity and great industry. These streams also conduce to 
that exemplary cleanliness which strikes the eye even of a 
Philadelphian. A citizen of Bath, in England, might find 
in Caracas a rival, though not in the beauty of its freestone 
palaces, nor in the breadth of its streets, but in the purity and 
cleanliness of its pavement. Bath, too, surpasses every 
town in England for its pavement, but the pavers of Colom- 
bia surpass them in skill and judgment; and I may as well 
discharge my ideas on the subject here as any where else, as 
I have been labouring under the impression, from the hour 
I first set foot in Laguayra ; so I shall turn back to that 
beginning of my subject, and say all I have to say on it at 
once, for 1 find topics multiply, and fear, at the present rate, 
instead of issuing a single volume, to send forth twins. 

I noticed the pavements in the entrances of houses, the 
patios y the streets, and ascending steep narrow lanes of La- 
guayra ; the pavement of the causeway, up the Sierra Avila, 
and down the back of the mountain into the streets, is excel- 
lent. In spaces nearly level, or but gently inclined, they 
do not use the minute precautions that they constantly foj- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 63 

low in more steep ascents or descents ; but the general sys- 
tem is not to pave in large spaces the whole length of a street 
as we do, but in compartments, and the figure of these com- 
partments are not regular squares or circles, but irregular 
triangles. Thus, in ascending the steep sides of Avila, were 
the soil naked, it must be inevitably washed into ravines, 
like those in the route to Honda. On first ascending, the 
ground being prepared as usualj the line in which water would 
descend is perceived from the form of the surface, and . a 
short line of stones on the edge are set up at right angles 
with that line of descent ; out of some part of this upper 
line, another line of strait stones on the edges is set up, 
which spaces are filled carefully with stones of round upper 
surfaces, as nearly alike as conveniently offer ; and thus in 
succession upward, triangles of pavement are formed, having 
regard to the dispersion of the descending water, which, 
checked in small quantities by these traversing lines, pre- 
vents the accumulation of water too much on one line of des= 
cent, and scatters it among many lines, constantly interrupt- 
ing and breaking it again. In the progress of the ascent, 
care is taken that the water thus broken, do not descend 
far down ; other lines of more weighty and larger stones, 
arrest them and carry them over the side of the precipice ; 
so that, however heavy the rain may be above, it is not suf- 
fered to pass in a volume down the road, but is at every 
twenty or thirty yards carried off, as is done on our northern 
roads, by small banks which turn the water into the ditches. 
There is this further advantage : I saw a patch of pavement 
under repair in Laguayra, but the patch broken up was 
confined within one of those triangles. The stones on the 
edge did not permit the damage to extend ; in one of our 
streets, the passage would be interrupted a week to make 
such a repair as was made at Laguayra, a street not more 
than twenty feet broad, the great and only thoroughfare, 
without interrupting the passage for one moment. 



64 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

I could not but regret to find that a city like Caracas 
has no sideway of stone or brick for foot passengers. There 
are, to be sure, no wheel carriages for burden or pleasure to 
endanger the foot passenger, and the centre of the street is 
the only gutter or channel for the flow of water ; the pave- 
ment, too, is as good as a pavement of round stones can 
be ; but then, where the women are so numerous, and so 
delicate, and their feet so small, to a proverb small, it is by no 
means indicative of Spanish gallantry, that the streets should 
be so rough, as if intended to deter them from the exhibi- 
tion of a satin or a sarsnet slipper on a beautiful foot, or the 
display of an elegant ankle in a proverbially neat silk stock- 
ing, in the public street j I thought, that like the style of 
the buildings, there was something oriental in it ; for the 
Mahomedan cities of Asia are thus narrow and forbidding, 
though not so neat as Caracas pavements, unless in the area 
of the Zenana or the porch. 

This style of paving in triangles is carried out of town, and 
in a manner to merit the imitation of people more vain of their 
progress in the arts, however recently acquired. I had made 
several visits to the valley of Chacao, of some of which I will 
give an account, because they go to shew the manners and 
state of society. In those visits, we sometimes passed a ravine 
that had been tremendous, rocky, and its sides composed of 
a soapy clay. It was not improved by a bridge, but in a 
manner less architectural and expensive, yet equally effective 
for communication. The steep sides of the ravine had been 
perforated so as to graduate a road of descent, to a given 
point of the side of the ravine ; twenty or thirty feet below 
the line of crossing, a firm massy wall of stone, put together 
with good masonry, was built across the ravine, which was 
more than one hundred feet broad ; above this wall, the 
space was filled up with the excavated earth, and other 
earth removed from above, so as to spread the water over a 
greater expanse, which was before continually working a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 65 

wedge-shaped trench below. This space, thus filled up and 
gently sloped towards the transverse wall, was carefully pa- 
ved with round stones, in the manner before described, and 
thus when the floods came on, the water having bee n de- 
prived of its power in volume, by dispersing it over a pave- 
ment which constantly arrested and turned aside its current, 
rendered the place passable. with safety at all times ; and the 
graduated access on each side, paved in like manner be- 
yond the summit, was not to admit of dilapidation on either 
side. It was a highway, and a great thoroughfare from the 
adjacent villages. The water which flings itself over the 
wall in the wet season forms a frothy cascade. I thought it 
would some day be spoiled, by being drawn off to mills 
which may require water power only a part of the year. 

The characteristic orientalism of the buildings, as well as 
the pavements, as I mentioned, struck me at Laguayra ; it 
was more striking at Caracas, The ground plan ample, 
walls massy, lofty folding gates, with a paved entrance, and 
sometimes another gate and wicket within the porch — the 
patio or open square within, the corridore on each face of the 
patio, the naked tiled floor, the broad, rude, unornamented, 
steep-stepped stairs of two flights, ascending to the upper 
floor, the lofty ceilings, or the timbers exposed without a 
ceiling ; the ample apartments, windows without glass, but 
closed by Venetians ; no fireplaces nor chimneys, walls na- 
ked, without ornaments of portraits or other paintings, as if 
the law of Mahomed had accompanied the style of building, 
and exacted obedience to the law of Moses, to the letter, 
against the fine arts ; but I forgot, there is an exception, and it 
is an exception every where ; there is no house without a whole 
or half length of the virgin ; I have been so profane at times, 
as to suspect female influence in this particular, and as the wo- 
men are really beautiful, and hold a sway over the other sex that 
is proverbial, they had induced this general devotion to the 
virgin from the pride of sex. A Bramin once said to me 

9 



66 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

in Bengal, that there were churches erected to St. Mary and 
St. Antony, but no church dedicated to the God of creation i 
here there appeared to be no divinity, but the favourite of 
the fair ; I have been told that St. Joseph appears in some of 
the houses, but I never was so fortunate as to see him ; per- 
haps he is kept in some back apartment, or in a corner. 

The Spaniards had left in some of the houses testimonials of 
their taste ; the house of Seiiora Antonia Bolivar, the very first 
I entered, presented one. The house, it seems, had been the 
head quarters of the last of the royal generals, and he had 
caused the principal apartment to be decorated, by an intended 
representation of a railed gallery, in front of a hedge of flow- 
ers, painted in fresco. The execution was laboured, but the 
flowers were all monsters, very much in the style of an In- 
dia palampore^ where laurels and poppies, roses and lilies, 
tulips and altheas, laburnums and marvels of Peru, appeared 
to issue, like the seven golden candlesticks, all from one stem. 
The good lady, at the first blush, expressed her disgust at 
the profanation of her walls, and determined that she should 
not be reproached by permitting such incongruities to stain 
her (iwelling. 

The departure from the Asiatic style of building of dwel- 
lings, in the omission of flat terraced roofs, surprised mc ; 
because, where there is such an abundance of lime, timber,, 
and tiles, and no frosts to disturb the plaister, no country 
could be more suitable for flat roofs, nor is any form of build- 
ing more eligible or delightful in such a climate. The cli- 
mate of upper and lower Hindustan, is much more sultry 
than any part of Colombia, with the exception of some parts 
of the coast ; there the roads are never broken, nor the houses 
injured by frost. The rains are much heavier than in any 
part of Colombia that I was in, yet the Asiatic houses are 
impervious to water ; and for evening recreation, or for so- 
cial enjoyment in company even late at night, the terrace roof 
affords an exquisite luxury. I saw only one terraced roof 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 67 

in Colombia, that was at Valencia, and, though not construct- 
ed in as neat a style as those of Bengal, the advantage of it 
was indisputable. The roofs in Caracas and in other places 
are of tile, of the C or the S shape ; they are unnecessarily 
heavy and ill wrought, and the roofs, which are angular, re- 
quire heavy timber to support them. But the absence of 
the useful arts in Colombia cannot surprise any one conver- 
sant with the policy of Spain. Those who were the first 
conquerors carried with them the Moorish style of architec- 
ture ; and they continue to imitate them at this day, while 
other nations have been improving all the arts and comforts 
of social life ; the Spanish policy forbid intercourse — and 
the arts were interdicted, lest a knowledge of the enjoyments 
of foreign nations should endanger the Spanish dominion. 

But the materials of which dwellings are constructed is 
matter of more surprise ; nay a prejudice continues to pre- 
vail, with the examples of the earthquake of 1812 before 
their eyes, that an earth, which they say is adhesive, is pre- 
ferable to wood or stone. This idea has been vindicated 
upon the ground of earthquakes having occurred, and that 
if the houses were built of stone, and an earthquake happen, 
they must be buried under the ruins. Surprising to say, 
the effect said to be apprehended from stone buildings, has 
happened from buildings constructed oi pita^ for this is the 
name they give the material. The houses of pita have not 
only failed, but they have become the graves of their in- 
mates; the crumbHng earth actually forniing mounds over 
those who expected to find security from them ; while the 
buildings of stone, without any exception that I could learn, 
have uniformly remained, and continue uninjured. The 
steeple of the Cathedral had a base of stone of one third its 
elevation ; the other two thirds were pita^ and these two 
thirds fell, while the stone part stands unimpaired. I went to 
see a house of three stories, in a street east of my residence ; 
it belonged to some enemy of the revolution who had fled. 



68 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

It was built of stone before the earthquake, and is the arily 
three story house in the city, where it still stands in per- 
fect order. 

Yet these facts have not produced any change. I in- 
dulged my curiosity in looking at the process of building 
with pita. The ground plan being measured off with lines, 
the art of building commences with a casson or box, usu- 
ally five ieet long, two or three feet broad, and the same 
depth, but without top or bottom. This casson is placed 
first at an angle of the proposed structure, the earth, said 
to be adhesive, is brought in sacks of cowhide upon mules' 
backs, and it is gradually thrown into the cassoui One or 
two men, with instruments like pavers' rammers, place 
themselves in the casson, and sprinkling occasionally a little 
water, in some instances some slacked lime, they continue 
till the casson is full, when they proceed with another, and 
another, till the first range is completed all round, leaving 
spaces where doors and windows are to be placed ; they 
commence to lay another range of pita beaten down in tte 
same way above the first, and so till the wall has reached its 
proposed elevation ; the wall plates, and principals, and rafters 
are not placed till a time when it is supposed the whole com- 
position of the wall is dry and firm. The interior partitions 
are of the same material; the floors are composed of tiles 
about fifteen inches square, and about one and a half or two 
inches thick ; they are coarse, though well burnt, but con- 
stantly warped both on the surface and the edges ; no pains 
are taken to dress them, and make a square form and edge ; 
the intervals between them are too open to admit of clean- 
liness but by excessive labour, and I have heard it urged 
that it was .pernicious to health to wash or sprinkle the tiles, 
so that, in houses of great respectability, these channels be- 
tween the tiles become the receptacles of dust, and the nur- 
sery of fleas ; of which, in companies, where the floors are 
of this kind, there is constant evidence of their activity, as 
they are reputed to be prone to attack silk stockings. 



69 



CHAPTER V. 

The Plaza Mayor— described^— market abundant — edible roots — fruit— the plan ' 
tain and banana — forage for cattle — precautions as to forage, food, and cookery 
on the road — the Plaza, the place of militia parade and all'public festivities— 
bull-fights, some account of — this Plaza the place where the patriots were 
executed — and convicted murderers now — Cisneros, a bandit — other Plazas 
— the University-^Library — antiquated learning — the Mathematical Hall — dia-^ 
grams fresh on the board — Portrait of Sir Isaac Newton over professors' chair 
— Students wear a fantastic costume — the productions of the press in circu= 
lation — state of medical profession — the clergy aim to monopolize education 
throughout the world — opulence and power of the Clergy — Convents — Ca- 
thedral of Caracas— Archbishop and Hierarchy — patronage of the church-= 
Bishops appointed by the King since 1508 — now by the Republic. 

The Plaza Mayor, or Great Square, is that of all others 
which is most remarkable. I have before observed it stands 
two hundred feet lower than the horizontal line at the bar- 
rier of Pastora, and two hundred feet above the bed of the 
Guayra. The street of Carabobo forms its east face, from 
which it is separated on that side by an iron railing. On 
the opposite side, with its west end on the street, stands the 
cathedral. The north side of the square is formed by ano- 
ther street, also separated from the Plaza by a railing, and 
its prolonged line is above that of the Plaza, which has 
been cut to a horizontal plane, and from which there is a 
flight of steps ascending to the street on the north face, a con- 
spicuous spot, where pavilions are erected on festive times, 
and odes and choral music performed. The west face is oc- 
cupied by a range of buildings of two stories, which is the 
common prison, but towards the square it has no unsightly 
appearance ; a street parallel with that of Garabobo is on the 
outer side of the prison. The south side is also faced with 
buildings occupied as shops, in which draperies and milline- 



70 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ries are sold ; and on its east side a street, which in the prolon» 
gation east and west crosses the street of Carabobo. On this 
street stands the university, of which I shall presently take 
some notice. 

The Plaza, occupying about the same space as one of the 
manzanaSi or blocks of buildings, must be about three hun- 
dred feet or more on every side ; it is paved throughout ; it 
is the public market-place, where every kind of food is sold, 
and where the display of abundance and variety, with the ex- 
ception of flesh meats, can be no where exceeded. Vegeta- 
bles and fruit, edible roots, such as are common to our mar- 
kets, and several unknown to us, such as the aracatcha, yuc- 
caSi and the apio ^ of one description of the yucca, the well 
known cassava bread of the West Indies, and of Colombia 
too, is made ; the other yucca is prepared as we prepare tur- 
nips, but it is a thick carrot-shaped root, white as a turnip, 
but more substantial when dressed. The apio is the root of 
the cellery^ it is as large as the common beet, but when 
dressed shows the pale yellow colour of the inner part of a 
carrot, and is equal to the parsnip, of which, as well as car- 
rots, beets, and many kinds of sweet potatoes, there are abun- 
dance ; the common potato I no where in Colombia found 
equal in quality, or so large in size, as in Europe or India, 
or our own markets ; the mode of cultivation is bad, and I 
saw a very learned and wise man, in all other respects, di- 
recting \\\s paisano to select the smallest potatoes for seed ! 
Nor could he be persuaded that these stunted and imperfect 
•vegetable roots, would produce a worse fruit than the seed 
of a full grown and large potato. The pulse are also abun- 
dant, and of kinds not common in the United States ; beans 
©f several kinds, vetches, caravanches, &c., the scsamum, 
and twenty kinds of maize. 

Oranges large, rich, and of fine flavour ; the pine apple 
in the utmost richness and flavour, the sweet banana of dif- 
ferent kinds ; and the giant banana or plantain, which is to 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. !7t 

the great mass of the population of South America, what 
the potato is to the Irish peasantry ; it is most abundant, 
and a nutritious food ; it is insipid in the raw state, however 
ripe, and is therefore eaten boiled or roasted ; it is of pleasant 
flavour, not unlike a sweet potato roasted ; when boiled in 
soup it is mealy, like a good potato, and in this way is cut 
into short pieces. The plant upon which it grows, though 
bearing the elevation and appearance of a tree, has no wood 
in its stem ; it is a fibrous annual plant, and with leaves 
from six to eight feet long. The plantain does not grow 
single, but in rows of unequal numbers, on a strong fibre 
upon which fifty or more grow ; and to the length of nine 
or ten inches each, some single plantains weighing two 
pounds. The peach and the quince, in perfection, find their 
way from places at a distance, and apples also, but not equal 
to those of the United States ; grapes, the nispero or med- 
lar, and many other fruits, the names of which I have not 
noted, and have forgotten. 

The heaps of onions, and mule loads of garlic, are here 
contrasted with the fragrance of beautiful flowers, the wild 
cinnamon, pimento, and other aromatic plants ; red and green 
peppers of numerous kinds ; the roots in large piles, the 
lighter articles and fruit in baskets of Indian fabric; rice of 
excellent quality, Indian meal, wheaten and barley flour. 
Bundles of ripe sugar cane, and stacks of molacha, or unripe 
maize, both brought to market for forage. The unripe 
maize stalks are the produce of the imperfect grains of maize 
separated in cleaning ; it is cast without ploughing or har- 
rowing upon some otherwise unappropriated spot, and is 
taken away for forage while the plant is young and fit for 
mastication by mules and horses. Throughout the country 
the feed for mules and horses is one or other of these articles. 
The animals prefer the young sugar cane to every other food, 
but it is not every where to be had ; the molacha^ or unripe 
maize stalks, is next preferred ; and this also is not to be had 



72 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

in some places on an interior journey ; barley, not in the 
grain, but green in the ear, is the next forage, and it is sown 
with the view to cutting in the green state. These articles are 
brought to market in the principal cities ; but the traveller 
who is a stranger, unless he has an experienced servant, will 
not find it an easy task to procure forage distant from towns ; 
and it is requisite, in such circumstances, to be prepared in 
advance, and to carry a supply of Indian corn, as he cannot 
proceed without it ; and the hke precautions will be requi- 
site in many places, as to the travellers' own food, and such 
cookery as he may need. 

Of the table vegetables, the Caracas markets present as 
much as there is demand for, and equal to the Philadelphia 
market in, quality, and at lower rates, such as cellery, lettuce, 
spinach, &c. The markets, are held on stated days, early in 
the morning, but articles of necessity may be had there every 
morning. The whole marketing is over before noon, and 
the square is usually swept, unless some public occurrence 
interrupts the operation. 

The Plaza is a place of military parade for the regulars, 
and of muster for militia. There public festivities and musi- 
cal celebrations of the festive kind take place, with elegant 
bands of music and poetical compositions prepared for such 
occasions ; followed by bull-fights and fire-works. With- 
out intending or expecting it, I found myself, after a ram- 
ble in different parts of the city, present at what is called a 
bull-fight, but which I should call a worrying of bulls : I did 
not regret the incident, however, because no accident occurred, 
and I should not otherwise have been so well able to judge 
of the intrepidity and dextrous skill of those who ventured, 
with so much confidence, to present themselves on horse- 
back before an enraged animal. Here it is that the paisana, 
or countryman, enters into competition with the city caba- 
iieroy and exhibit their dexterity in horsemanship, and in 
literally overthrowing the infuriate animal. The labouring 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 73 

people of the suburbs and villages adjacent, come hither 
mounted on horses of about thirteen hands high, spirited, 
muscular, and well knit, hardy, and well formed animals, 
and in the most perfect command ; the riders either in the 
smock frock or shirt over the pantaloons, and the tail or 
skirts of the shirt in rustic embroidery ; the feet with shoes 
or paragattas, often naked, ahd carrying on the heel a tremen- 
dous pair of spurs, or only a single spur. Others with the 
romero, sometimes of cotton, with broad stripes of blue j 
or the blanket of the same size, that is, about two yards long, 
and about the centre a slit, though which the head is thrust, 
and the ends hang before and behind, and being broad 
enough to cover both arms to the elbows, leaves the limbs 
free ; others of a degree of opulence more advanced, come in 
ciierpo^ and handsomely dressed ; all with hats of straw or of 
the fibres of the Cuqmsias^ (American aloe) or the Palmyra 
palm : men on foot sport with the animal by presenting 
themselves in his front, with their romeros or cloaks in hand, 
which, when the bull charges at them, they dexterously cast 
over his head and jump aside. Many assail the animal at 
once in this way, while others seize the tail, which instantly 
induces a plunge forward ; the horseman takes occasion 
when the bull escapes from those on foot, to pursue him, 
and, on horseback, irritates him in the same tvay ; and it is 
surprising in what command he has his horse, usually evad- 
ing the charge, by throwing his cloak, as usual, and, in the 
language of the manege, by a demi-volt, or a peroiiette^ with- 
out moving his horse's hind feet from his position, comes 
round on his haunches ; the poor animal carrying off the 
cloak, until feeling the efforts of the pursuers to seize his 
tail, he plunges with more desperation, and, what is very ex- 
traordinary, among a crowd, to whom, from his apprehensions 
of his pursuers, he appears indifferent. Six bulls were at 
one time in the Plaza on one occasion, and some hundred 
persons on foot, and more than fifty on horseback. But 

10 



7^! VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

the great feat of competition among the cavaliers, is to bring 
the bull to the ground, not with darts or spears, for thesCj 
nor indeed any other weapon but the single hand of the in- 
trepid horseman is used. It is in the pursuit, when the bull 
is enraged, and bounds forward in its fury, that this feat was 
two or three tinies performed on this occasion. While the 
bull is in full career, the horsemen contend at the full gallop 
to seize the tail, and when this is effected, to so twist the 
tail, as to form what sailors call a half-bight or knot, 
and holding it so firm that much agony is produced, the rider 
gives a jerk, and the bull is thrown to the ground. It may 
be conceived what intrepidity, and what muscular power, 
the rider must have, who can thus prostrate an animal so 
powerful and weighty ; for the black cattle of Colombia are, 
wherever I have seen them,- — and I have seen millions, 
more uniformly fine animals than I have seen in England or 
the United States. 

This plaza, appropriated to so many uses, serves also for 
purposes more serious. It was on this square that so many 
virtuous men were condemned and suffered death, victims 
to the jealous tyranny of Spain, and often to the cruel pas- 
sions of the local rulers ; men whose virtues were objects of 
terror, who being beloved by their neighbours, kindred, and 
countrymen, were therefore guilty in the apprehensions of 
despotism. I could designate and give the history of some 
of those victims with which I became acquainted ; and many 
more of no less celebrity and worth also fell sacrifices, whose 
memory is embalmed in the hearts of their kindred and fel- 
low-citizens ; but they belong to history, and I do not deem 
myself authorised to relate what was made known to me in 
the confidence of private intercourse — the pen of history is 
already engaged in preparing the record of Colombian sa- 
crifices, and the devotion of its martyrs to freedom. 

It is in the same plaza that malefactors also are executed ; 
while I was in Caracas, the neighbourhood, and the valley 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 75 

of the Tuy and other surrounding valleys, were infested by a 
banditti, under a desperado, of the name of Cisneros ; he was 
in the correspondence and pay of the Spanish general Mo- 
rales, and committed the most daring outrages, murders, and 
rol)beries ; the police of the city had employed every means 
of stratagem and force to seize him ; for a long time without 
success ; he had the hardihood to enter the city disguised, 
and send notice to the police that he was there, but not until 
he had previously prepared to decamp. In one of those ad- 
ventures, he had two of his band with him, and they were 
traced to their rendezvous, only a few minutes after Cisneros 
and one of his band had departed ; the third was, however, 
taken, convicted, and executed in the Plaza. Whether it 
was the effect of the war, or some other cause, I cannot pre- 
tend to say, but although the general rumour was abroad 
that the convict was Cisneros himself, there were not fifty 
persons besides the public guard present at the execution. 

There are several other open areas denominated plazas in 
different parts of the city, but none of them uniform squares, 
nor paved like the Plaza Mayor. That of Candelaria, before 
referred to, exhibited nothing so remarkable as the ruins of its 
Church, separated from the street by a fantastic Gothic rail- 
ing, some of the grotesque pillars of which yet remain, the 
Church itself a vast mass of earth ; the area was never paved. 

Neither was that of the plaza of St. Paul, the churchof which 
stan'Js without any symmetrical relation to the plaza on the 
S. E. atigle, which is passed in the route to Valencia. The 
exterior of the church excites no curiosity ; but a fine foun- 
tain, nearly in the centre of this irregular space, is handsome, 
and when we passed it on our journey, was surrounded by 
a very considerable croud of females, who I remarked were 
uniformly round and full, clean in their persons, and their 
garments brilliant as snow. 

The Plaza of St. Hyacinth, within the precincts of the 
Dominican monastery, is not spacious, but it is neat, and h 
a thoroughfare. 



76 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The Plaza La Trinidad is devoid of symmetry, and mere- 
ly an open space. 

The Plaza of St. Lazarus is a neat enclosure before 
the church or chapel of that name : but appears to be rather 
in a suburb than part of the city. 

The Piaza of Pastora exists only in melancholy tradition, 
and is designated by heaps of ruins, which appear indistin- 
guishable from the ample barracks, that formerly stood ad- 
jacent, and fell in the common ruin of the earthquake of 
1812. These ruins strike the eye on entering the city from 
the Sierra Avila, and, unless prepared by some previous in- 
formation, would not excite emotion ; as where cultivation 
does not appear, or forests, the appearance of these ruins is 
that of the arid mountain range, which looks as if it just 
issued from the hand of nature in a rude unfinished state, 
calling upon man to ^o to work upon the raw material. 

The Plaza of St. John is rather an irregular long-sided 
triangle than a square. The barracks here are spacious, 
and it is the depot for the discipline of new levies and 
mounted militia. 

The college, which was founded only in 1778, a year 
memorable for its influence on the revolution that is now 
accomplished, bears the appearance of a structure of the 
eleventh or twelfth century. It was erected into an univer- 
sity in 1792. On entering from the street, there is a de- 
scent of one step; perhaps the graduation of the street has 
been much later than the structure. It stands on the south side 
of the street which forms the south face of the Plaza Mayor. 
The lower apartments are gloomy — and much more croud- 
ed than the buildings of Caracas generally. The usual broad 
staircase of tvi^o flights leads to the upper apartments, which are 
more spacious and airy. The students at this time were about 
one hundred, and distinguished by a whimsical and certainly 
useless costume. It was a kind of pale purple or hyacinth- 
coloured cassock, with a scalloped cap of the same colour, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 77 

of the shape of the cap of the priests of the Greek church, 
and a sort of stole of crimson gave it a fantastic appearance. 
The youths disappeared, as we- were conducted by an amia^ 
ble and intelligent Isecular clergyman, one of the professors, 
into the hbrary. I examined the backs of many ponderous 
folios and quartos, where the fathers of the Church, and the 
canonists — Johannes Scotus Erigena, and Thomas Aquinas, 
yet hold their long-neglected places ; tor the books appear- 
ed to be very quiet, clean, and undisturbed ; yet many men 
of very great eminence and virtue have passed through the 
forms of this university ; J. G. Roscio, the Toros, the To- 
vars, the Montillas, Bolivars, Guals, Palacios, Salazar, and 
many others who have been founders, martyrs, or victors in 
the cause of freedom, had their education therCj notwith- 
standing the inauspicious obscurity of the lore which encum- 
bers the shelves. I could discover nothing modern in the 
library, but a map of the world, suspended so high, as to 
defy even the aid of spectacles ; one of the ladies discovered 
that it was turned upside down, and noticed it with the ob- 
servation, that like every thing it had undergone a rev- 
olution — which produced a sensation of pleasure in our 
amiable conductor — It was probably a prank of some stu- 
dent. 

I experienced much more pleasure when we were con- 
ducted to the mathematical hall, where we found the geome- 
trical diagmms fresh upon the board. Over the professor'si 
chair I perceived a portrait in the costume not of Spain, but 
of England, more than a century ago, and learned that it was a 
portrait of Sir Isaac Newton, an incident very significant of the 
decline of prejudice under the influence of liberty, and a singu- 
kr contrast with the philosophy of Scotus, the Irish logician.. 
I could not but recollect that Newton was in his own country- 
treated by the orthodox as an atheist, because he would not 
consent to recognize the thirty-nine articles; here, where 



IB VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the inquisition had not yet ceased seven years, the spirit of 
the age had placed his portrait where probably Athanasius or 
Scotus had formerly held a place. It marks the progress of 
generous sentiments and liberal ideas; and it was further 
interesting from the fact, that the amiable ecclesiastic who 
informed me of the circumstance, appeared to partake in 
the pleasure I had expressed. I did not find the Logic 
of Condillac nor Locke on the Understandingj which I had 
been told by General Lavaysse were introduced there. Some 
changes however have been made in. the course of studies, 
though they are still unsuitable to the knowledge of the age ; 
but there is a necessity for patience, and improvement must 
follow where the mind and the press are free, and the eccle- 
siastical as well as the military are subordinate to the social 
laws. I found Condillac, and numerous other books, in dif- 
ferent private libraries. The period when the constituted cor- 
tes existed in Spain, was not all lost : the press of Vaiiado- 
lid and other parts of Spain, poured forth many hundreds of 
important works in Spanish ; originals written for the revo- 
lution, and others translated from French and English, I 
found the works of Baron Holbach on the toilette of a charm- 
ing woman, and ventured to rally her on the subject of the 
work ; her reply was as wise as it was artless and ingenu- 
ous : " Trutli, Senor, is like a young lady, who, if she 
expresses apprehension on her character being inquired into 
by her lover, must at least excite his curiosity, if not his 
.doubts." Books of an . elementary kind are found in all 
parts of the country. The exile of so many natives of Spa- 
nish America and of Spain, had cast numbers upon Eng- 
land and France, and the United States, who, being gene- 
4*ally well educated and liberal men, and poor, have found 
sources of support in the preparation of works adapted to the 
circumstances of the New World. It is a commerce that 
must augment in a tenfold ratio within ten years. The press 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 79 

is not yet in more than its infancy, or about what it was in 
the United States in 1764. 

I understood there was only one student of medicine in 
the university, and I was not surprized at it, as a variety of 
circumstances concur in disparaging the medical profession. 
The prejudices which have been generated by the satire justly 
cast upon the state of quackery in Spain, were naturally trans- 
ferred where the language and practice were the same : the cli- 
mate throughout is adverse to diseases ; many are unknown ; 
and the calentura in the plains, the goitre in a long range of 
the interior, and some occurrences of leprosy in particular 
parts of Colombia, form, with the exception of some diseases 
produced by irregularitiea, the only objects of medical ne- 
cessity. The medical class do not therefore obtain, be- 
cause there is not so much need of them, the same rewards 
as in countries where they are more necessary. The ©pi-" 
nions of a great mass of the population correspond with that 
which the amusing novelist has given of Dr. Sangrado. In 
some inland places the medical fee was formerly una real, 
literally the eighth of a dollar ; I have not any where heard 
of more than four reals, or half a dollar a visit. I have met 
some Europeans of the best medical education, but none out 
of the army, and I . found only two natives of Colombia,^ 
one of whom found, as he good-humouredly said, that 
there was not sickness enough in Caracas to live upon, and 
it became necessary that he should turn coffee-planter, in 
which he prospered and dispensed the benefits of his edu- 
cation, though not so profitably, with much credit and satis- 
faction. The other I shall notice when we reach Tucuyo. 

The university of Caracas, nevertheless, as I have said be- 
fore, has had the honour of many great names among its stu- 
dents. I have mentioned only a few, whose reputation is in- 
separable from the revolution ; who, having handled the tools 
of science at the university, employed them to the benefit of 
their country and species. The great evil and obstruction of 



80 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

science, in this university, is, that instruction is confined 
"wholly to ecclesiastics ; who, affecting more concern for the 
affairs of another world, in order to hold men in mystical 
thraldom, endeavour to unfit them or to disengage them from 
this world, in which it has been the wise purpose of the Al- 
mighty to place men. The clergy of Colombia are very te- 
nacious of their authority, and have in fact made education a 
SMonopoly. Yet the revolution proves that there is a conviction 
adverse to these exclusive pretensions, and that the discus- 
sion of dogmas and mysteries occupies more time and labour 
than is necessary or reasonable. The Jesuits every where 
aimed at this monopoly, or a predominance which would en- 
able them to govern society, by gaining the direction of the 
public seminaries, the formation of the female mind, and the 
preference as private teachers ; and thtrir success has been 
only inferior to that of the Bramins. But surely this is not 
peculiar to Caracas or Colombia. And, after all, is not the 
same course pursued, with and without avowal, by those 
who have withdrawn from the Romish church, and pro- 
fessed to discard its practices ? Do not the ecclesiastics of 
every sect and theory seek the same influence over the hu- 
man mind, through education ? The Jesuits, as well as the 
Bramins, knew that men must be led away from the exercise 
of their reason, or they could not be enslaved ; and every 
day's experience shows that the same disposition to hold do- 
minion over the mind by means of a partial education, pre- 
vails among all sects and all religions. 

Those who have succeeded or superseded the Jesuits, 
have pursued, though with less beneficial effect, the same 
system. The Dominicans and Franciscans were hostile to 
the Jesuits, as they have been hostile to each other ; as much 
so as the reformed churches have been hostile to them all. 
An archbishop of New Granada (Caballero) once exiled the 
Dominicans to Panama ; they were afterwards restored, and 
now abound in rich possessions. The Franciscans were at 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 81 

a certain time charged with teaching the doctrines called 
Calvinistic, and were held in abhorrence by the Dominicans, 
These two orders are now great admirers of the revolution, 
but look to be exclusively instr-uctors, that they may render 
the revolution itself subservient to them ; while the Capu- 
chins, who calculated upon the royal triumph, have been ex- 
pelled for their treachery, by a decree of 14th September, 1819, 
and their convents appropriated to public education — where 
ecclesiastics still continue to be the teachers of the children 
of those who have fallen in defence of freedom ! 

Under the Spanish regime, the opulence and power of the 
ecclesiastics were as inordinate as in Europe in the fourteenth 
and fifteenth centuries. The principles of the faith they 
professed to teach, are wholly incompatible with the riches 
they have accumulated, and the luxury in which they live. 
It was a striking feature of the despotism, that it upheld 
those establishments, and those multitudes of consuming, 
or destroying, and non-productive drones ; but the mo- 
tives are obvious : they were not to be feared as enemies, 
and as agents they accomplished the purposes of the de- 
basement and subjection of the people, so long as the 
people could be kept m ignorance, more effectually than 
by an army of bayonets ; and, being divided into orders, 
they were, when refractory, more easily managed. Besides 
the orders of monks, who were always wrangling among 
themselves, the secular clergy were obnoxious to both. The 
Dominicans disputed with the Franciscans, and both with 
the seculars ; other regular orders took their sides ; and while 
they preached " peace on earth and good will to men," 
they made a trade of spiritual (as it was called) warfare, and 
traded in those earthly riches which they professed to abjure. 
The hatred of the Moslem Soonies and Sheas was not more 
vehement than that of these religious orders ; who professed 
to be the interpreters of heaven, the advocates and exemplars 
of men, while they deliberately and systematically sought to 

11 



82 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

deprive men of the use of those faculties bestowed by the 
Creator, and, by binding them in the fetters of ignorance, to 
convert them into a condition inferior to brute beasts. The 
revolution has had a wonderful effect in restoring to sobriety 
those perverted men, and perverted institutions, but it is by 
what they were, we learn to appreciate the benefit which hu- 
man nature derives from the revolution. They were success- 
ful for three centuries in subjecting those whom they had 
restrained from the cultivation of their intellects ; they ex- 
tracted alike from the acquirements of the very poorest, and 
the most opulent, contributions so rich and inordinate, that 
in every part of South America their establishments, whether 
churches for worship, or monasteries for seclusion and indo- 
lence, surpass all others in magnitude, expence of erection, 
interior embellishment, even to extravagance, alike without 
taste to gratify the understanding, and without the humility, 
or simplicity^ or disinterestedness, taught by their master. 

I believe it was De Pons who observed that, with the ex- 
ception of the Contaduria (office of accounts), the Government 
had not a house of its own in Caracas ; and houses were 
rented for all other public services. 

This fact is very striking when compared with the eccle- 
siastical establishments, of which Caracas has within its ju- 
risdiction five parishes, with structures of different degrees 
of magnitude and revenues. The archbishop of Caracas, un- 
der the royal government, had a revenue of 60,000 dollars 
a year. The parishes of the city are those of the Cathedral, St. 
Paul, St. Rosalia, Alta Gracia, and La Candelaria, besides 
the churches of other fraternities of various denominations ; 
the order of Predicadores of St. Philip Neri ; the chapels of 
St, Maurice, the Trinity, and La Divina Pastora, which, not 
being parishes, belong neither to convents nor hospitals. 

There were several monasteries for men of the Domini- 
cans, Franciscans, and order of Merced ; the priests of the 
oratory of St. Philip Neri also have a church. There were 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 83 

two nunneries, that of the Blessed Conception, and that of 
Mount Carmel, and a few females are still entombed within 
those living graves ; they are, however, old ; and, among the 
blessings of the revolution, is the abrogation of those inhuman 
institutions which enabled unnatural parents to sacrifice their 
younger females to the vanity which would aggrandize one 
child at the expence of nature, and the justice due to the rest. 
Females cannot now be compelled to disregard the laws of na- 
ture, nor the obligations of social duty, before a given age, 
and I had on a particular occasion an opportunity to hear 
from the innocent lips of a young lady, an acknowledgment, 
in the fulness and candour of her heart, that, although she 
had once thought she must finish her days in one of 
those gloomy cloisters, in exclusion from the world, she was 
now well enough satisfied to live among the numerous 
good people whom she had found in it; and thanked the 
revolution for enabling her so to do. 

An association more beneficent is a voluntary association 
of young ladies, of the most opulent families of Caracas, 
who are not tired of the world, and make it a duty to pro- 
mote the good of others. They make no religious vows, but 
devote themselves to the education of young females, and 
other charities. It must be obvious, that from the very- 
contracted education which females have been hitherto per- 
mitted to receive, the education they promote must be 
also limited, and besides that the monks, like the priests of 
all religions, take care to address themselves to those edu- 
candasy because they knew how much the sex holds power 
over human concerns, and all the interests of society. 

The Cathedral of Caracas is a stone building, and, with 
one third of its steeple, also of stone, remams uninjured by 
the earthquake ; its appearance is by no means striking Out- 
side ; but within, looking towards the altar in the east, it is 
a very respectable, and not so unmeaningly glittering as other 
churches. It is said to be 250 feet in length, east and west, 



84 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

and appears to be about eighty broad in the outer extremity* 
It is divided into two aisles on each side of the nave, by 
four rows of columns of stone ; six in each row : the nave be- 
ing as broad as two of the aisles on either side, the elevation 
of the side walls may be about thirty-six feet. I measured 
nothing, and if there be any error, it must be attributed to 
the inexactness of my eye or judgment. The roof is well 
constructed ; and the light, though not glaring, is sufficient 
for a service where candles are constantly burning. The ex- 
ternal light, however, is sufficient to afford a distinct viev/ 
of some good and some ordinary paintings, vi^hich are nei- 
ther too many for good taste, nor for the purposes of their 
disposition. They are distributed and placed with judg- 
ment ; and there are among them some superior to any I 
have seen in any other part of Colombia. The great altar 
Stands at the east end of the nave, as the altars in all Euro- 
pean churches do ; though I noticed several churches in Co- 
lombia and elsewhere, which deviate from this primitive 
principle, which would have been a fatal heresy in the fif. 
teenth century. The decoration of the altar is not so taudry 
as m. olhtT churches, though some travellers appear to consi- 
der this as a iault, which to me appears judicious. There 
are in the aisles fourteen altars, at which service is perform- 
ed at particular times. 

The high mass, at which I attended, was celebrated, with 
the usual pomp and magnificence of the Catholic ritual on 
such occasions ; the music, which in every department of 
Colombia is interesting from its excellence, was here very 
imposing, and would be perfectly impressive, were not the 
greater part of the west end of the nave occupied by a 
cumbrous, gloomy, and uncouth choir, which concealed 
the choristers, and broke the vibration which gives to church 
music a great part of its finest effect; besides, those who 
shared in the service on the floor, had, from the elevation of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 8g 

the choir, no opportunity to join in that part of the service, 
which it is the practice in other Catholic countries to do. 

The hierarchy of the church in Colombia, is at present 
unsettled to a certain extent. There are many sees vacant. 
That of Caracas is vacant through the adherence of the 
archbishop to the royal cause, his retirement to Spain, and 
his subsequent appointment to a Spanish see. The princi- 
ples are, however, determined by the republic, and the con- 
cordat, to which alone the republic will subscribe, is that 
which existed between the Papal see and Spain. No bishop, 
or archbishop, or even a curate, could be appointed by the 
pontiff, but upon the nomination or presentation of the 
monarch ; which the papal authority merely ratified ; nay, 
the council of the Indies must have approved before the 
nomination. The republic determines, by a pursuit of the 
rule, barely transferring to the present sovereign what was 
exercised by the former. The Spanish court is opposed to 
a concordat, and obstructs by intrigue at Rome the conclu- 
sion of an accommodation; and it renders an effective ser- 
vice to the republic, that it should be so protracted, as every 
day's experience proves it to be superfluous and unnecessa- 
ry ; as it conduces, in the early operations of the new insti- 
tutions, to still the agitations which the clerical order can 
make, from the number of aspirants who look up for those 
church livings. 

The papal bulls, which bestowed the new world on Fer- 
dinand and Isabella, had lost some of their ostensible sancti- 
ty ; the revolution totally destroyed it. If the pope should 
affect to force or disregard the republic, the effect may be 
the dereliction of all European ecclesiastic connexion, and 
the constitution of a Patriarchate, independent only in doc- 
trine of the European pontiff. The ecclesiastics no longer 
exercise that pragmatic power which gave them a jurisdic- 
tion, coercive or penal, over individuals. They are them- 
selves amenable to the ordinary tribunals, unless in cases 



86 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

appertaining to their ecclesiastical establishments. Thus, as 
a decent respect for religious opinions is not irreconcilable 
with social rights, the clerical order having voluntarily as- 
sumed the care and concerns of another world, possessing all 
the security they require, and all the authority that is not in- 
consistent with the social state, are more at leisure to devote 
themselves to the future, and to detach themselves from the 
present. The whole patronage of the church, in Spanish 
America, was in the monarch— it is now in the sovereign 
people. The church dignitaries were bound to render an* 
nual accounts to the monarch; and it was through the 
church returns the council of the Indies obtained the 
best statements of the population ; although there were not 
wanting instances in which those returns were much below 
the real number : the bishop might apprehend that the souls 
(contributors) would be deemed too many ; the same im- 
pression might influence the curates ; so that, by suppres- 
sion in both cases for the purpose of concealing emolument, 
the census always appeared less than the real number. 

The right of ecclesiastical patronage, in the Spanish mon- 
arch, was recognised in 1508, by Pope Julius IL The de- 
tail of the ecclesiastical affairs will be touched on more at 
large in a subsequent chapter. 



87 



CHAPTER VI. 

Religious ceremonial processions — some anecdotes concerning — " do in Rome as 
they do in Rome." — Ambulatory beggings-and chanting in th.e streets. — Thea- 
tre — the Intendant a spectator — the character of the spectacle — long drama- 
tic exhibition. — Country round Caracas — visit a Hacienda of Gen. Clemente re- 
stored after desolation by the Spaniards — lanes of orange trees — sugar-fields — 
populous villages — town illuminate4 as we returned — name day of the Liber- 
tador — immense throngs in the streets — gaiety — military parades — diversity 
of military costumes — churches open — high mass — musical celebration and 
festive odes on the Libertador — tears and remembrances at this festivity — the 
scene of Spanish butcheries — splendid ball at night. 

Strangers, who are unacquainted with the . institu- 
tions, forms, and customs of the Catholic church, as they 
are maintained in countries entirely or predominantly 
catholic, are apt to treat the ceremonials which are occasion- 
ally exhibited in the public streets, with levity, or an indis- 
creet disrespect. Education no doubt has its share in the 
emotion which is thus produced, especially in those of the 
reformed sects, whose discipline and doctrine are most re- 
pugnant to the mother church. The ceremonial usages of 
the catholics in the United States and in England, are con- 
fined to the service within the bounds of their churches, and 
in fact there is less pageantry, for such it is, and less of the 
display which appertains to the greater festivals, such as 
Christmas, Passion week, Easter, and those of Corpus 
Christi, and the various holidays of the Virgin, in the Uni- 
ted States, though all religions have an equal freedom and 
exemption from constraint. Persons educated in the Uni- 
ted States therefore, even members of the Catholic church 
who visit Portugal, Spain, or Italy, are not prepared for 
the difference which is so striking, between the ceremonials 
and usages of the same church; and it is perhaps much 



88 VISIT TO COLCWilBIA. 

more so in the countries formerly Spanish, than any where 
excepting Portugal or its dependencies in Asia and Ame- 
rica, by which I particularly refer to Goa and to Brazil ge- 
nerally. Nor is this at all surprizing, when it is considered 
that ail other institutions and usages, public and domestic, 
have stood until the revolution upon exactly the same un- 
changeable and restricted ground as at the conquest. I had 
not an opportunity, while at Caracas, to witness the religious 
processions which take place there on certain festivals, but 
I had ample opportunity to be a spectator at Bogota, where 
the pomp and pageantry certainly rivalled in extravagance 
what I had witnessed at Goa many years before. 

There are some customs which I witnessed at Caracas, 
that belong to the narrative of manners which I have under- 
taken to give. One of these is common to catholic. coun- 
tries generally, the other may be, but it never before fell un- 
der my observation. Passing along one of the public streets, 
I had just turned a corner, when I heard the tinkling of 
a small chamber bell ; my ear had been familiar to such 
sounds in the ceremonial of the mass, and for a moment I 
forgot that it is only in the morning that mass is celebrated ; 
but my cogitations were soon terminated by the appearance 
of a small corps of clerical men and assistants in their cos- 
tume of celebration ; a boy preceded with the bell I had 
heard, which he tinkled at intervals ; he was followed by an 
ecclesiastic who carried the sacrament with the chalice, and 
the usual covering ; he was attended by others ; and a small 
crowd of boys and females followed. Upon the approach of 
this procession, all persons, before passing in either- direc- 
tion, halted, standing uncovered, generally against the sides 
of the street — the procession moving along the centre. As 
the procession advanced, the passengers uncovered their 
heads, some bent a knee, and the women, without excep- 
tion, knelt wherever they had stood on seeing the procession 
approach j and as it is a safe maxim, founded on prudence 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 89 

as well as civility, to conform to usages which do no dis- 
service, but the neglect of wliich may be injurious, it is 
best to *' do as they do in Rome ;*' it was the ceremonial of 
carrying the eucharist to a person, who was supposed to be 
approaching death, on which occasion two sacraments, the 
eucharist and extreme unction, are administered. This cus- 
tom was familiar to me, but not its publicity, which was 
wholly unexpected, though educated in that church myself. 
Returning from a visit, some time after night-fall, I heard 
the sound of choral music ; for a moment I looked round 
to see what church it proceeded from, not having seen any 
in that qu'arter before ; but the sounds becoming more dis- 
tinct, I stopt, and was indeed pleased with the strength and 
concord of the chant, in which, though the delicate tones 
of many puerile voices were evident, they were happily in- 
corporated in harmony with a fine tenor. The males and 
females passing, as soon as this source of symphony became 
visible, arranged themselves as usual on the sides of the 
streets, in the centre of which a crowd, only distinguishable, 
as yet, by the lighted tapers which they each carried in their 
hands ; other lights, suspended to a lofty frame, of about 
seven feet by four, displayed a picture transparency, I could 
not distinctly perceive thenSiibject, but of course some saint 
or holy personage ; I believe, however, it was the Virgin. 
All heads were uncovered, but I saw none kneel ; the paint- 
ing was carried by persons who sustained it in an elevated, 
but inclining position, a range of youths with tapers ad- 
vanced in front, the picture followed, and then a priest, in 
dark canonicals, with his stole; they continued the chants 
till they came in front of the residence of an opulent citizen, 
where they halted and chaunted for a few moments, when 
the door opened ; a female advanced and presented some- 
thing to the clergyman, and the procession was resumed ; 
and thus it frequently stopped, and was visited from each 
house in the same way. Passengers, male and female, also 

12 



90 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Stepped forward and communicated with the priest. More 
than one hundred persons followed, many of whom, accord- 
ing to the ancient practice, united in the strain ; as was also 
customary among the minstrels of the thirteenth century, 
who sung romances along the public streets in the same 
way ; and from whom the practice is probably derived. 

This perambulation is, however, a species of mendicity, 
and, as the churches which are not parochial derive all their 
resources from the voluntary bounty of the pious, I presume 
these processions have in view the solicitation of contribu- 
tions. The donations I have been told are very small, una real 
being the most that is expected ; though the sex are said 
to be given to " do good by stealth," and bestow much 
more than is solicited. 

The difference of education, and the customs of countries, 
give to these processions an air of novelty ; and, unless it be 
the interruption of the streets, and its frequent recurrence, 
it is a harmless custom. The impressions derived from 
education among the numerous reformed branches of the 
Christian church, are, no doubt, adverse to these pompous 
ceremonials, and the use of pictures and images, much more 
at the worship expected, or by implication exacted, in 
uncovering the head and bending the knee during the pass- 
ing of the sacrament. Yet, after all, is there not as much 
prejudice on the part of the offended as the offenders ? Upon 
a dispassionate examination, it will appear that the pomp of 
the mother church is by no means greater than that of the 
Jewish ceremonial, nor more mysterious, and yet the He- 
brew Scriptures are disseminated as doctrinal. There is an 
allegory in the ceremonial of the mass, in which every action 
is emblematic of some event in the passion and death of 
Christ ; however this allegory may have been adapted to ages 
of extreme ignorance, when the art of printing was not at hand 
to inform the great body of the people, an allegory of this 
description was calculated to engage the senses, and carry. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 91 

with the memory of the ceremonial explained, a solemn im- 
pression of the event to which it referred. The conversion 
of ceremonial forms into doctrinal obligations, and the dan= 
ger of another great schism, which would separate the intel- 
ligent from the uninformed, has prevented any alteration of 
moment, in the ceremonial forms ; and if the mind is chained 
down by despotic governments, and among the rest by the 
policy of the church itself, this pomp becomes a sort of ne- 
cessary resort, as the antidote to that disorder which would 
arise from the absence of a system, as well as of know- 
ledge. It is to be desired, that all Christian sects would 
consent, in all countries, as they do in the United States, to 
worship, without compulsion or reproach, each in their own 
way. Religion being a matter purely individual, no man 
being responsible for the errors of another, and opinion being 
itself derived from the accidental position of the individual in 
his first years ; the charity of the Christian precept would 
seem to demand, not merely a right to the exercise of 
choice, but mutual forbearance among those who profess 
the worship of the same object, and, in reality, differ only in 
those forms, or the pragmatic inventions of mystical or bar- 
barous ages. I have been often asked as to the state of re- 
ligion, and the influence of the priesthood in Colombia, and 
sometimes accompanied by a zealous wish that missionaries 
could be sent among them as among the Indians ! There is 
some contradiction between such inquiries and wishes, and 
a complaint that is sometimes made as to the doctrinal 
tenet of the Ca|;holic or universal unity of the church, and 
the incidental inference that no one can be saved out of it. 
Unquestionably, such was the theory of the Catholic church 
as soon as it had become politically potent ; and, in some 
countries, it continues to be put forth still. But is not this the 
tenet of every sect? Do not the sects of the reformed 
churches hold salvation as belonging to themselves exclu- 
sively ? Whether avowed or only inferred, the fact is the 



92 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

same, every sect must entertain some such opinion, or why 
form a separate sect ? If the Catholic be not entitled to sal= 
vation according^ to any one or more opinions of sects, is not 
that the very subject of accusation ? It is lamentable that 
mankind should be thus held as perpetual adversaries, and 
the doctrine of peace and good will be made the foundation 
for discord ! There could be no difficulty in tracing the evil 
to the cause of its duration-— but it might be deemed in- 
vidious — 

For modes of faith let graceless zealots fight, 
His can't be wrong, whose life is in the right. 

I was led to this digression without premeditation, and it 
is not worth while to erase it, by the manner in which some 
of our young Americans, whom I met in my travels, be- 
haved on such occasions, and which has caused me some un- 
pleasant moments. I heard one relate an anecdote of him- 
self with great self-applause : the sacrament passing, as is 
customary, the gentleman would neither stop nor uncover 
his head ; one of the procession party intimated that this act 
of respect was due, and added, according to his educated 
belief, " will you not take off your hat in the presence of 
God ?" (meaning, according to the doctrine of transubstan- 
tiation, the sacrament) — this liberal, who, had it been in 
Turkey, and neglected what was expected of respect to 
the Moslem ceremonial, might have found his head in 
hands— replied, pointing to the heavens, — " Dios ariba /" 
God is above, — and he exulted not a little at the act, be- 
cause he knew he was perfectly secure. 

On another occasion, at one of those ambulatory beg- 
gings, a young American followed the procession, where 
there was no head covered but his own ; the militia had 
been mustered that day, and one of those who had fallen in 
with the procession had his firelock ; the American stranger 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 93 

was requested either to take ofF his hat or retire ; like Gold- 
smith's centinel, he conceived his religion in danger, and 
his dignity called upon to refuse ; the militia-man raised 
his firelock and fired it in the young man's face j to be 
sure the loading was only powder ; but thanks to the revo- 
lution, which has caused respect to be paid to strangers, 
and who surely owe respect to decorum at least in return, 
the matter there ended ; had it been before the revolution, 
the ball might have been used with impunity. And, after 
all, was it worth while, for the mere performance of an act 
of civility, which would be paid to any decent-looking man 
or woman in the public street, to induce such a reproof? — ■ 
in fact such an insult — for the militia^man was not insensi- 
ble that such an act as his must be seriously felt — and un^ 
doubtedly, if the issue.be compared with the cause that pro- 
duced it, a person of good sense would prefer to avoid an 
insult so palpable, by recollecting that he was disregarding 
the institutions of a whole people, whose hospitality he every 
day experienced, and flrom whose laws he expected protec- 
tion. A man of good sense would say *' I am but a stran- 
ger, the laws have declared that a given religion shall be 
that of the state ; that no man shall be molested for his 
opinions ; that no man must disparage the established reli- 
gion ; it would be absurd for me to set my private educated 
opinion, acquired in a foreign land, against the acquired 
contrary opinion in this land, where I am a stranger; I 
will not incur the risk of martyrdom for the mere gratifica- 
tion of setting their customs at defiance ; an act of civil re- 
spect is not an abandonment of the judgment, or the right 
of freely thinking, but an act of decorum which even the 
prejudices of men will not forbid, where evil cannot arise 
out of it." I have seen a worthy man at Goa, committed 
to the prison of the inquisition, and very grossly abused, for 
an unintentional act under similar circumstances. In Co- 
lombia, the government itself is bound to respect the edu- 



94 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

cated habits derived from ages, by forbidding all external 
religious transactions that might produce contention or vio- 
lence; and it is not in such a case for a stranger to say this 
whole nation is wrong, and I will set myself up to dis- 
parage it ; he may consider these processions idolatrous ; they 
believe them holy— the laws say they shall not be treated 
with contempt — a man, who is desirous of martyrdom, may 
find opportunities enough to gratify his penchant ; but the 
preferable course for a man of sense, if he cannot conform 
to the decorum of society, is not to enter a country where 
his delicacy may be shocked by the zeal of a fanatic, or the 
significant hint of a militia-man. 

Having some curiosity to see the theatre which Hum- 
boldt so correctly describes, I chose to go alone, and found 
admission for una real ; and, hearing that the pit was an 
open area, I made my way up stairs, and found myself in a 
box, the door of which had been politely opened for me. 
My position was in the transverse line of boxes in front and 
parallel with the stage. Ranges of boxes, all filled with com- 
pany, principally ladies, occupied both sides of the parallelo- 
gram ; the ground-floor, literally the ground, was the pit, and 
the ceiling, the blue serene spangled vault of heaven. The 
stage was about twenty-four or twenty-five feet broad in front, 
flanked by what the players call wings, forming two sides of 
a square. The front scene, by the falling of which the acts 
were discriminated, was a sort of pastoral picture, such as a 
century ago were prefixed by sentimental writers to works of 
the imagination ; and when it drew up, displayed such 
oblique wings as are found in the theatres of itinerants, ex- 
hibiting columns or trees in bold daubing upon stout pa- 
per. The flat or back scenes, diminished according to the 
stage laws of perspective, were changed as the subject called 
for a camp, the chamber of a palace, a forest, or a shipwreck, 
air of which appeared in dramatic progression. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 95 

My progress in the language enabled me to catch only a 
part of the dialogue and the theme, but 1 found it had a plot, 
in which Achilles was discovered in petticoats, and Patro- 
clus and Hector, besides some other Greeks and Trojans, 
composed the dramatis personse ; among whom also were 
Andromache and Briseis, and, though last not least, the 
frequent associate of Spanish dramas, a buffoon, a sort of 
Scapin^ who made mirth serious and melancholy laughable : 
as for example, during the dire conflict of arms, for what I 
know between Hector and somebody from Greece ; this 
Spanish clown displayed, by outspread lingers, staring eyes, 
and trembling action, all the contortions of clownish fear- — 
and when the heroes; like the Kilkenny cats, disappeared, 
the affrighted clown exclaimed " Jesu Christo /" It would 
be trifling to dwell upon the anachronism; but there was 
another, the " airy sea" in the back ground, at first calm as 
•the lake of Valencia, was on a sudden disturbed, and a square 
rigged vessel appeared — it is wrecked with some striking 
heroine, whom the Scapin, with great gravity, helped to re- 
lieve, while the gallant Menelaus, or somebody else, stood 
on the sea-shore, admiring the roses in his own sandals. 
The clown was, nevertheless, amusing — his powers of face 
much preferable to the quality of his jokes, though sa 
much out of place and time; and, though he imitated 
nature most abominably, in an appropriate drama he 
would have merited at least as much applause as he got ; 
which was more than Hector or Andromache could say for 
themselves. After all, the credit of the piece, whatever it 
may be, belongs to Spain, from whicli this species of drama, 
of I know not how many acts, is derived ; for it commen- 
ced about six o'clock; and it was tvyelve when I came 
away, leaving the play not yet finished. 

Soon after I was seated, the intendant. General Soublette, 
entered, and placed himself on the same bench, and asked 
several questions as to my opinion of the drama, which I 
answered without any reserve, and in which he agreed. 



S6 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

This gentleman appeared in his costume as a private citi- 
zen, and without guards or attendants, hke a republican ma- 
gistrate ; it gave me pleasure to see it ; and the occasion 
enabled me to perceive, in the amenity and cordial manner 
with which he recognized persons of different conditions, 
how suitably he filled his station. The theatre was perfect- 
ly orderly, though all parts were full ; cheerfulness and gaie- 
ty were conspicuous in the boxes, and between the acts, as 
elsewhere, they chatted in tones not very much depressed, 
something louder than a whisper — yet perfectly agreeable, 
with their friends in adjacent boxes. The boxes here, as in 
Spain, are like pews in our churches, private property, and 
the owner with the key transfers the right of admission. 

The country around Caracas, from the distance, presents 
an unbroken appearance of prosperous cultivation ; and, un- 
less where the casualties of the revolution have by the flight 
of the former owners suffered them to go to decay, the reali- 
ty is as prosperous as the appearance. We had numerous 
parties in different directions of the valley, which it would 
be tedious to particularize, two or three will be selected as 
sufficiently characteristic. As there are no wheel carriages, 
the ladies ride, and with ease and self-command. General 
Clemente being absent, his interesting wife and daughter 
made up a party of both sexes, about twenty in number. 
Their Hacienda, or coffee plantation, lies in the valley of 
Chacao, about three miles and a half east of the city ; it had 
suffered from the violence of the Spaniards, while they were 
in possession of Caracas, as all property of the patriots did ; but 
the activity and intelligence of Seiiora Clemente had already 
gone so far in its restoration, that when we arrived the do- 
mestics were already occupied in the preparation of a hand- 
some crop of coffee, for the process of shelling by the mill. 
She had replaced the houses demolished by the Spaniards ; 
but not so lofty, or so large ; she erected what in Bengal 
would be called a spacious bungalow, but in familiar Ian- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 97 

giiage a spacious thatched house, with all the accommoda- 
tions required for convenience and for comfort ; and here 
we had a table already laid out with abundant wines, cakes, 
never omitting the pride of the Caracas housewives, a vari- 
ety of the finest sweetmeats ; and, as it was a day to take air, 
and to see as well as converse, we perambulated the ave- 
nues of the coffee trees, saw those which had escaped ruffian 
outrage, and the new and vigorous plants in full fruitage, 
which had replaced those that were destroyed ; we saw the 
ditches, which deliberate vengeance had dug to draw off the 
virgin stream, without which the plant perishes, and where 
it vvr)s restored and improved, so as to diffuse its healthful 
rivuk'ts over a more extended surface, with the enlargement 
of the plantation. The valley in the rear, or south-east of 
the Hacienda, is more than 100 feet lower than the planta- 
tion, and the sugar cane was rearing its golden stems in pa- 
rallel lines, and the manufacture was already in progress 
of drying, cleaning, and shelling. The store houses and of- 
fices, which cannot be too airy or commodious for the skil- 
ful preparation of the coffee, yet exhibited their wrecks, but 
were in the slow train of reparation. Until these are repair- 
ed, the process is carried on only by expedients very slow, 
but with care effective ; earthen pots supplying the place of 
steeping cisterns, cowhides instead of sloping platforms for 
drying, and wooden troughs and hand pestles, the place of 
the shelling- mill. I felt much satisfaction at the cheerfulness 
and contentedness of the labouring people employed; there 
were some women who had been slaves, but who would not 
separate themselves from the hacienda of their former master, 
and who appeared to feel the happiness of being restored to 
the kindness of the excellent family, by whom they were treat- 
ed as kindly as their kindred. 

Lanes of orange trees ornamented the verge of the lower 
valley, and the extremity of the coffee ground. In the moun- 
tain, more than a mile distant, but which scarcely seemed *a 

13 



98 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Stone's throw, one of those chasms or openings, characteristic 
of the mountain regions, was displayed by the abrupt termi- 
nation of the hills which skirt the south side of the Guayra, 
from the westward to this place ; this leads to other valleys, 
rich as that of Chacao, far to the south, and west, and east. 
After spending a delightful day, we returned by a different 
route, having passed the handsome bridge of Candtlaria, 
over the Anuco, on going out, and the paved causeway here- 
after noticed on our return. I was not aware that there was 
so populous a suburb, until this occasion ; but there were 
several villages on the road, and in full active population, oc- 
cupied by agriculture ; and many arrieros, with their mules, 
who transport the fruits of the valley to market. We were 
overtaken by the light shade of night as we entered the city, 
which we found to be already very generally illuminated, it 
being the 27th, and the name-day of Bolivar being the next 
day ; so that, not content with the birthday itself, they illu- 
minated the night before, and they continued it on the 29th, 
which was also devoted to general festivity : we spent an 
evening as agreeable as the day, the spirits light, and exhila- 
rated by this delicious climate. 

The 28th being the President's birth- day, the voice of 
the artillery was heard very early in every direction ; and^ the 
drum gave "a louder note" than common. The streets of Ca- 
racas are usiially very still, and seldom crowded in ordinary ; 
on this day they appeared like ant-hills with their inhabitants 
in motion. The military shone in all their best uniforms — if 
it be not a misnomer to call that uniform, which conforms 
to no common cut, or pattern, or colour ; but they formed 
to a stranger's eye an attractive spectacle, some in blue, red, 
or yellow short coats, with blue, red, yellow, or white pan- 
taloons ; waistcoats scarlet, yellow, or white ; and many with 
each of the three garments of a different colour, blue or red 
coat, with red waistcoat, and yellow trowsers ; others with 
trowsers a la Turc, of yellow, white, or crimson, tied above 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 99 

the ancle ; some with fan hats, and others with the like di- 
versity of leather, straw, or Italian caps, and towering fea- 
thers of diverse hues. There were some officers of the staff, 
who paid more regard to military uniformity, who wore their 
blue coats, fan hats, boots, white waistcoats and breeches, 
sabres, belts, and spurs. These varieties of colours were 
not altogether the effect of caprice or vanity ; there was a re- 
gulation for uniform, but a regulation could neither import 
cloth sufficient of a colour, nor pay the tailor ; so that the 
necessities of the case authorised an innovation, which ca- 
price and vanity improved upon. 

This festival drew out all the troops, regulars and volun- 
teers ; the latter composed, like our own during the late war, 
of the promising youth of the most opulent families, and 
best educated, who, indeed, appeared to as much advantage 
as those whom they resembled : the diversity in the uniform 
was not so great among these as among the regular officers. 
The arms were, in general, in excellent condition as to ap- 
pearance, but some were lit on^y for a parade of ceremony. 

The regulars of the line w<:re in jackets of Russia sheet- 
ing, Osnaburg pantaloons, sliirts, and shoes, and apparel ge- 
nerally in very good condition, whole, and neat. The caps 
were the leather caps of the French fashion, a frustum of a 
cone inverted, with a shield for the eyes in front, in good 
polish ; belts and other accoutrements neat. Each regiment 
had a facing, such as red, blue, or yellow, and the cut of the 
clothing proved that the tailor's establishment was complete. 

Such of the officers as rode during the day were well 
mounted ; and some fine horses, sixteen hands high, ap- 
peared on parade, the first I had seen of that stature ; bays 
and blacks, but particularly roans and moose-coloured. I 
was sorry to see that some of them had been subjected to 
that cruel, wanton, and pernicious practice of nicking, which 
undertakes to disfigure that beautiful animal, and to deprive 
him of the means of protecting himself from insects, and 



100 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

often injuring his health and temper. The saddles worn by 
the mounted officers were the high-peaked and cantled, the 
only saddles fit or safely to be worn in this steep moun- 
tainous country. The housings were not agreeable to the 
eye of those who are accustomed to uniformity ; they were 
extravagantly gaudy, and no two alike. 

I had full opportunity to see the troops move, and they must 
not have had ears or souls if they did not move well, and in time 
to their inimitable drums and bugles and wind instruments, of 
which there were several distinct bands ; their marching was 
in lively animating triple time, and their attention and silence 
most exemplary. I could not but recollect my two poor 
sentuiels at Laguayra, and wished they were here to share the 
new regimentals, or at least a pair of paragattas each, and a 
part of iht good things that were handed along the line. Sal- 
vos t)f artillery took place, and the troops went through the 
usual ibraib common in other countries. 

The churches were all open, and it was on this occasion 
that with my daughter I attended high mass in the cathe- 
dral, where the Intendant with his suite were present ; his 
coat was of scarlet with embroidery of gold, that would not 
have appeared to disadvantage in the cortege of Napoleon. 

After high mass was finished the troops formed in the 
great square. A pavilion had been erected over the flight 
of stairs at the north entrance, and a full band of vocal and 
instrumental musicians performed some musical pieces, and 
ther-e were recited and sung some odes written for the occa- 
sion, in which whenever the name of Bolivar occurred, 
and it was the whole theme, the air resounded with accla- 
mations, not only from the soldiery, but from the vast con- 
course assembled. Where I had placed myself, I could 
hear many exulting expressions and allusions to former 
times, and to the cruel butcheries that had been committed 
on that very plaza, which was at that moment the scene of 
triumph and grateful celebration of the hero, whose con- 
stancy had surmounted all difficulties, and liberated his 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 101 

country. Numerous ladies attended, and the windows of 
the adjacent houses were crowded with them. Tears of joy 
and of remembrance flowed in abundance from the eyes of 
aged matrons, and widows, whose fathers, husbands, bro- 
thers, or sons, had perished by Spanish vindictiveness, and 
whose wrongs were expiated by the triumph with which 
they could not but be assimilated on this occasion. 

The evening had been assigned for a splendid ball. A com- 
mittee was selected from the principal citizens and ofiicers, 
to whom the direction was given, and who acted as stew- 
ards, to which we had the honour of an invitation, and of 
which I shall give some account, as indicative of customs and 
manners, in the next chapter. 



CHAPTER VII. 

Anniversary of Boljvar, 28th October — rejoicing and ball — sketches of manners 
— dancing — music — waltzing. — Customs derived from Spain remaining. — Eti- 
quette. — Equality realized. — Many beauties absent, royalists. — The magna- 
nimity of the republicans towards the royalist families, a noble contrast with 
that of the Spaniards to patriot females.-^An exposition of the principles of 
this conduct by a revolutionary sage. — Dr.Xitchfield. — Party to Chacao. — 
Evening at Blandin's — plantation described — and house — the excellent means 
for steeping and preparing coffee — the augmentation of the plantation — kind 
of soil — females of the family — domestic concert. — Generous feeling towards 
Bolivar. — Midnight party. — Exquisite climate. — Novel aspect of ruins by 
night. 

The whole of the 28th was a day of uninterrupted festivity. 
The climate, always temperate, was, on this occasion, particu- 
larly favourable to the interchange of visits and to- walking. 
The streets were crowded by the genteel class of young 
ladies, visiting some hours in their gayest apparel, and di- 



102 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

vested of every care but innocent enjoyment. The side 
tables in every house were covered vv^ith refreshments and 
bouquettes ; and it was not until near night that the neces- 
sity of preparing for the ball left the streets, for a short time, 
in silence. 

No hall, in any private house, could be procured sufficient 
for the accommodation of so large a company as was in- 
vited. One of the largest houses, however, had, besides a 
spacious hall, a contiguous saloon and corridore ; and these 
were enclosed and floored for the dance, and the adjacent 
chambers for an entertainment, substantial and convivial. 

The company had assembled before eight — a double band, 
for relief, was established in a passage between the saloon 
and the floored corridore, so that two sets might dance at 
the same time ; arid the dancing soon commenced. In the 
Spanish contra-dance the couples stand as in our contra- 
dances, and the order is for the leading couple to dance down 
the whole set. But the musical time and the figures are 
substantially diflferent. The elastic bounding figured steps, 
and, in a word, the exercise of our style of dancing, are not 
known in the Spanish dance ; the time is rather slower than 
the waltz in general, and, like waltzing, consists more of 
measured pacing than vivacious dancing ; the figures too are 
more involved ; for, although they change right and left, and 
perform all the common movements of our contra-dance, it is 
performed in graduated pacing, in which the hands partake 
as much as the feet, and the inclination of the head and in- 
flections of the person, exhibit the most graceful positions of 
the figure. At first the force of custom interferes with the 
idea of pleasure to a stranger ; it had not life enough for me ; 
but, after a little use, it becomes highly agreeable, and where 
the dancing and music are so fine, very interesting. 

Waltzing followed the first set of contra-dancing, and 
continued alternately till about twelve, when parties of ladies 
only were drawn oif for refreshment ; after which the gentle- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 103 

men were detached in turn, so as not to interrupt the 
dancing. 

I had full opportunities to review this new and very inte- 
resting assembly, on this interesting occasion. The Inten- 
dant was present, at the birth day of his friend, as the 
station he occupied would necessarily call for. He was in 
the regular blue uniform, and took his station at the head of 
the room, the custom of the Spaniards yet prevailing ; and 
I found it the same at Bogota. Adopting the Spanish laws, 
from the very impossibility of forming a new code in the 
midst of war, the other usages go along with them. It is, no 
doubt, harmless, that a governor should preside at a festive 
celebration ; but, as of prescriptive right, which custom, long 
pursued, comes to be, it is not consistent with the equality of 
a free state, that the authority, vested as a trust for public be- 
nefit, should give countenance to a prerogative of precedency, 
where the principles of equality admit a magistrate to a pri- 
vate house with no prerogative above that of any other citizen. 
There was certainly no intention to set up an authority in the 
circle of domestic festivity, but a free people should not 
suffer a mere usage, at present not suspected to be evil, that 
may become one very serious. The Spanish minister Yrujo, 
during his residence in the United States, attempted to en- 
force an etiquette of precedence at the entertainments which 
the President of the United States gave to public ministers 
and their families ; but it was not tolerated ; the President, 
with his usual discernment and firmness, saw that it would 
lead to an endless squabble between the jealous vanity of 
one sex and the diplomatic artifices of the other. He de- 
cided that the first lady who came to his entertainment 
should have the first place, and so in succession. That 
there were no orders or degrees of priority or precedence in 
republics, and, if it were not proper that he should discharge 
his domestic duties, he would give his chair to any of his 
guests ; for he was only a citizen at the festive board. It is 



104 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

but just to say that general Soublette neither presumed nor 
assumed any thmg unbecoming, he complied with a custom 
established ; and no one was offended, or even suspected, it 
would seem, that there was any thing incongenial with free- 
dom in the usage. 

There were sixty couple in each of the two sets on the 
floor, and in motion at the same moment. As the dancing- 
rooms were spacious, the intervals behind the dancers af- 
forded ample space to see all the dancing parties ; and I had 
an ample opportunity to view the beauties of Caracas. As 
the x)flicers of the army every where are acquainted with the 
ladies, I had selected a friend from that class to be my con- 
ductor, and, as we passed along the gay ranks, I had the 
names and anecdotes of all who moved before us, male and 
female. I treasure nothing up on such occasions unless it 
be honourable and agreeable ; my memory has no place for 
any thing else ; and it was with sincere delight, of which time 
has not diminished the remembrance, that I saw on that occa- 
sion a scene of concord and liberality, good sense and propriety, 
which the enemies of the revolution had pretended to be im- 
possible, and the enemies of that revolution are the enemies to 
liberty everywhere, whatever they may pretend to ; I saw in the 
unaffected and cheerful intercourse and association of that ev- 
ening, the confutation of those croaking predictions and mali- 
cious aspersions cast upon the revolutionists, before triumph 
put a seal upon their cause ; it was predicted that the people 
of colour could never agree with those of fair complexion. 
Here I saw beauties as fair as Cynthia, and as ruddy as Hebe, 
brilliant white and roseate, gracefully traversing the mazes of 
the dance, with citizens composed of every shade, from fair to 
the complexion of the native Indian ; women, however, well 
educated in the best knovvledge taught in the country, and not 
the less esteemed for not being wholly fair compicxioned. 
The apprehensions insinuated by Depons, and attempted to 
be realized by Spanish emissaries, were here proved to be an 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 105 

iilusion I there was no discrimination now made, but by in- 
tellectual and moral fitness for personal respect or public sta- 
tion. The native Indian is no more a slave under the pre- 
tence of being protected, or placed for security in an encomi- 
enda ; he is not compelled to abide with a number of others, 
unfortunate as himself, and to cultivate a piece of ground in 
common, and pay to his tyrants an annual tribute, only be- 
cause his ancestors were enslaved by foreign invaders, and the 
enslavement entailed on their successors. The Indian is now 
a man like other men, and they have earned it with the 
blood which they devoted to the emancipation of their coun- 
try. The obligation is felt, and, to the honour of human 
nature, it is honestly acknowledged. 

I was gratified to see this rational regeneration, and I was 
surprized to learn, when expressing my satisfaction at seeing 
so many and such beautiful and elegant women, that all the 
beauty of Caracas was not there ; my guide informed me, 
that the ladies of several respectable families were absent, 
and among them many very beautiful women. In short, he 
told me that they were females of families devoted to the 
royal cause, to whom the occasion of this festival was a 
source of mourning instead of joy, and that they attended no 
festivity which had approval of the revolution for its object. 
What a subject for reflection ! How glorious is it for the cause 
of liberty to inspire and practise so much moderation ! What 
a contrast does this generous toleration present to that brutali- 
ty which the royalists displayed to the wives and daughters of 
the republicans ! I could not but take renewed delight when 
I saw passing before me the lovely wife and daughter of 
Lino Clemente, who but barely escaped with life into exile, 
and now move among the most distinguished of their coun- 
try, in celebrating that liberty which disdained to retaliate 
upon innocent women, actuated by love of their parents to 
adhere to an unfortunate cause, the injuries which those very 

14 



106 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

parents perhaps had inflicted on those who now triumphed in 
glorious joy and more glorious humanity. 

In turning this subject in my mind, I became apprehen- 
sive, that this indulgence, like that to the ex-nobles in 
France and elsewhere, might prove pernicious ; in conver- 
sation with a venerable patriot the next day, I touched this 
subject, and inquired if there was any foundation for appre- 
hension. His sentiments were as noble and generous as 
they were wise ; I cannot express them with the sparkling eye 
and glow of satisfaction which he displayed ; but what he 
said was to this effect : 

It is very true, said he, that those very interesting ladies 
make it a rule not to partake in any national festivity ; and 
it is the more to be regretted, because they were foremost 
in such festivals as were customary when the royalists tri- 
umphed over our disasters. But they are females, what else 
could they do? their parents had educated them in those 
principles, and shall we, who inculcate the duty of children to 
their parents, punish them for only doing what we cherish, 
and are proud of our own children for doing in accord 
with that duty ? They are innocent creatures, nay, I know 
many of them to be worthy of esteem and admiration. 
What could they do to injure us? we. are not destitute of 
women worthy to be wives to our sons ; and if those do not 
marry republicans, they can have no other husbands here ; 
they cannot live in celibacy fifty years longer ; and if they 
marry at all, they must have republicans, and then even 
their children — those children they love, will be Colombians 
and not Spaniards. It was worthy of a sage like Franklin, 
and the sentiments do honour to the country and the cause. 
It was very late when I retired from this ball ; at which 
the profusion of luxuries — the abundance of Champaign, 
Burgundy, Muscadel, and other wines, and the unalloyed 
happiness and hilarity that prevailed, I never saw surpassed 
any where. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 107 

As our circle of intercourse extended, so did the hospi- 
talities and kindness of our friends. Dr. Franklin Litch- 
field, an American, long a resident, married to a lady of un- 
common worth and fine understanding, had rendered us un- 
unceasing kindness and service. American visitors to Ca- 
racas found in him an invaluable and assiduous friend ; his 
appointment to the consulate at Puerto Cabello, while it does 
credit to those who appointed him, deprives the American vi- 
sitors of Caracas of a sure resort whenever aid was necessary. 
He made us acquainted with Mr. Blandin, a name familiar 
to travellers, and proverbial for his hospitality. 

A party, of both sexes, was formed to visit Mr. Blandin 
and family, at his residence about four miles east of the 
city, and about a mile and a half from the south base of the 
Silla^ in the valley of Chacao. The residence is more than 
a mile from the road to Petare, and leads along the trench 
through which the stream that irrigates the coffee plantation, 
finds its way to the Guayra ; it was bounded by a hedge of 
lime trees, not very much attended to, but bearing fine fruit. 
The coffee plantation stands between the road and the dwell- 
ing, and the beautiful erithryna^ with its wall-flower-like 
blossom, more abundant than its foliage, intercepted the view 
of the house, until close upon it. Our path to the house 
was amidst the avenues of the coffee-tree, beautiful, luxuri- 
ant, and loaded with fruit. The young people were busy 
with their delicate fingers, picking, with skilful dexterity, 
the brown berries from the long beads among which they 
had grown, and depositing them in neat baskets carried on 
the left arm ; the fruit being in every stage of growth, at 
the same time, and the tree never ceasing to bear. 

We entered the court-yard from the east side, through 
which a handsome stream made its way, gurghng and fall- 
ing over little steps, dividing and occupying two channels, 
one of which rambled along a bed of pebbles in front of a 
platform raised about three feet above the spacious area in 



108 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

front of the dwelling, the other rill discharging its water into 
a capacious circular bason of masonry, which stood two or 
three feet below the surface of the area. 

We had crossed this chattering rivulet, and passed the 
left wing of the dwelling, when Mr^ Blandin came forward, 
called servants to take our horses, and, when he had seated us 
in a spacious hall open to the south, he welcomed us seve- 
rally, and ordered some fruit, sherbet, and other refreshments. 
The lady of the house, and her sister, and a daughter of 
about twelve, soon after came, and we were all at our ease 
in a few minutes. I left the ladies to their own discourse, 
and visited the various parts of this truly splendid and perfect 
establishment. 

The dwelling itself, was exactly like a real bungalow of 
Bengal, in form, spacious, lofty, and made of the like ma» 
terials. The conviction of the danger of pita walls, after 
the earthquake of 1812, determmed this judicious planter to 
erect a dwelling, of which the walls should be bamboo ; and, 
though the climate is not sufficiently warm to produce the 
bamboo there, the valleys south and east afforded him am- 
ple supplies. I did not measure, but I guess that the front 
of the dwelling must be more than sixty feet. A neat 
apartment of about twenty feet in front, and about the same 
depth, occupied each extremity ; the space between these 
two apartments is open like a corridore with bamboo pillars, 
which sustain the front of the roof, not less than twenty feet 
high, at the eaves ; and forming part of the single roof, 
that covers the whole extent of the dwelling ; which ap- 
peared to have several excellent rooms within the verandah^ 
as it would be called in Hindustan. 

In front of the house, and of the offices on the west end, 
a spacious paved area, forty or more feet broad, extended 
east and west about two hundred yards ; the mills, pounding 
house, cleaning and store houses, occupied a very^ ample 
space ; the stream, which had its source in the Silla, was con- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 109 

ducted, by ingenious cpntrivances, to turn an overshot mill 
whtei, which performed the services that employ human la- 
bour on other plantations, various means of cleansing and 
separating the clean grain from the husk. There was a 
smithery, carpentery, and other workshops, which required 
only occasional employment, but, where artisans and imple- 
ments are not abundant, were essential to an establishment so 
ample. 

The raised platform noticed before, ranged east and west 
on the south side of the paved area, along the whole front ; 
it was of brick work, about three feet from the pavement on 
the inner side, six or eight inches lower on the outer side, 
so as to have a gentle slope, and receive the full force of the 
sun's rays, when the grain was spread, before or after steep- 
ing, or drying for packing up ; several steeping cisterns^ 
with trap doors, were placed at equal distances in the plat- 
form, so that in the various processes of steeping and drying 
no extra labour was required, nor time lost in shifting it from 
one place of the operation to the other. The stream which 
was noticed at the entrance, after being dipersed to various 
points ; after turning the mill wheel, supplying domestic uses, 
furnishing the kitchen, the laundry, and the bathing apart- 
ments ; reunited its dispersed rivulets, in the circular bason 
constructed of stone south of the platform, in which silver 
and gold fish sported ; and the redundant water overflowing 
through several prepared spouts, again dispersed over more 
depressed courses, through which it spread and meandered, 
through channels prepared and graduated to conduct it over 
the whole coffee orchard. 

The number of bearing trees at this time was about ten 
thousand, and their average product gave a dollar a tree per 
annum. A more ample field was in preparation ; east and 
south-east of that already in production. As the ground 
was naked, I had an opportunity of distinctly examining it ; 
the soil was of a dry light composition, rather resembling 



110 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

wood ashes, mixed with pulverized schist or slate, and dim 
sparkles resembling mica, but not so large or bright. Even 
this soil was thin and scanty. Fire had been employed to 
clear several acres of brambles and exuberant wild briars ; 
the space uncleared was covered with the common bramble, 
Rubus Coryfolius^ and cloud blackberry, Rubus Chamamo- 
rus ; and other wild brambles peculiar to the climate, and 
Hot named in our botanical works. The rocks appeared 
nearly as abundant as the surface covered with the scanty soil, 
and, in truth, the whole plantation on which the coffee plant was 
thus luxuriant and prolific was of the same description, so 
that climate and irrigation appear to be the essential requi- 
sites. The theories of writers who have not seen this culti- 
vation, are therefore not to be wholly relied on. Depons, 
with all his experience, says that it is requisite to be at some 
distance from the sea, the air of which withers the coffee. 
Mr. Blandin's trees have the screen of the Avila mountain 
and the peak of the Silla between them and the sea, but at 
Curucuti, on the north face of the Avila, in sight of Maqui- 
teia and the Caribbean sea, and open to the north and north- 
west, the most pernicious winds of that region, the coffee- 
tree flourishes in the same beauty and abundance as at Mr. 
Blandin's. The father of this gentleman was the first who in- 
troduced the coffee culture here in 1784 ; he had been a 
planter in the French colonies, and his respectable descend- 
ant, when he received us, was in the usual attire of the West 
Indies, a loose robe, or morning gown, and a cambric hand- 
kerchief in a negligent state covered his head. Well-dres- 
sed female domestics performed the services of the house, 
without any appearance of direction or command, but the 
exactness ; and their cheerfulness was manifest in their hap- 
py visages. Chocolate and ice-cream, and the never- failing 
nor ever- cloying sweetmeats, and indeed all that might be 
expected at an opulent West India planter's, and given with 
such kindness, as seemed to infer a compliment in the ac- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. Ill 

ceptance. As the sun advanced westward we were conduct- 
ed to the sitting room, where we found a most elegant or- 
ganized harp of French manufacture. How it came there, 
or how brought, was the sentiment which succeeded the sa- 
tisfaction of seeing and hearing its excellent tones. Some 
of the officers of the army, who were of our party, and the la- 
dies, soon formed a concert, and executed some symphonies 
of Mozart in a perfect style. One of the officers proved to 
conceal beneath a modest deportment a most accomplished 
performer, and in a fine style accompanied with his violin 
the pieces which the ladies executed on the harp ; the infant 
daughter displayed evidence of the care and success with 
which her ear had been formed, and her voice and finger 
practised. The order and happiness of this family was en- 
viable, not because they could be less than they merited, 
but because it would be desirable that all human beings 
should partake the like felicity. The respectable master of 
the house, though he spoke not a word while they were 
singing and playing, was visibly the soul of the concert ; 
he watched and enjoyed the performance with a delight that 
would seem to belong to those only who were for the first 
time made partakers of his hospitality and its pleasure ; in- 
deed, his delight appeared increased with the satisfaction 
and the enthusiasm of some of us. He did not sit down 
during the performance ; his stock of music was ample, and 
appeared to be kept in so much order, that he never looked 
at the piece which he drew from the ample bureau, but pre- 
sented it to his lady or her sister, or to the gentlemen who led 
in particular pieces. I could not avoid complimenting this 
worthy man, by telling him he need not envy the condi- 
tion of any man on earth. *' Yes," said he, " there is one 
man whom I envy, though I love," and pointing to the 
only picture in the apartment ; on approaching it, I found it 
to be Bolivar. His expression of countenance and eye, 
which seemed to twinkle with delight, conveyed sentiments 



112 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

more expressive than any form of language. I was silent 
for a few moments, for I did not desire to disturb either his 
exquisite feelings nor my own ; but I endeavoured to trans- 
late his thoughts, which seemed to say, " It is true, I am 
happy in the midst of my family and in the affection of my 
friends ; I want nothing for comfort, enjoyment, or gratifi- 
cation ; but what are the enjoyments of a single household 
compared with the felicity of soul which that man must en- 
joy, who, by years of disinterested labours, dangers, and 
indescribable sufferings and sacrifices, has led his country- 
men to triumph over a pernicious government, and not only 
given freedom to his contemporaries, but secured it for thou- 
sands of generations that are to come?" 

Our delight stole away our time, and we certainly must 
have trespassed on the domestic regularity which was every 
where so manifest ; and when we stated our apprehensions, 
we were assured that they were not the slaves of time or 
ceremony ; that, as it was in their power to compensate by 
sleep at any other time, the hours devoted to agreeable inter- 
course, it was only painful when it was not continuous. We, 
however, decided — our horses were soon at the door, and 
taking leave of these happy people, about one o'clock in the 
inorning, we retraced our way through the now dark shadows 
of the beautiful Erithryna, and the avenues of the coffee 
tree. 

The night was, as it is usually at the season, serene, the 
bright blue canopy, studded with its splendid host of bril- 
liant worlds, and the air so pure and transparent, that the 
apparent monument at Petare, three miles east of our path, 
was distinctly visible ; and one of the lofty churches of 
Caracas, in the west, as distinctly marked. 

We passed by a plantation on our way home, which be- 
longed to a gentleman, a native of Caracas, who, after study- 
ing medicine, could not find, in a population of 30,000 souls, 
enough of sickness to live by, and therefore determining not 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 113 

to ^'- die of the doctor,^'' had established himself here, and 
was already rich. 

A ruin, which we were too busy to regard on our way to 
Blandin's, now, in the silence of the night, attracted my atten- 
tion ; it stands close under the south-west foot of the Silla, 
and close to the ascent ; it bore the ruined appearance 
of former splendor, and like a solitary palace of Persepolis, 
the roofless walls and columns still standing. It had been 
erected by some former chief ruler, and occupied later by a 
man of wealth, who proved faithless to his country. Many 
structures of a similar character are in a like state. Oppor- 
tunities were frequent, when, by returning to their first love, 
those mistaken men might have been reconciled to their 
country ; but the infatuated could not be persuaded that the 
untutored soldier of Colombia could ever resist the veterans 
of Spain. These mistaken loyalists now find, too late, how 
little of gratitude is due to the monarch, who, by his relent- 
less disregard of every consideration but his own despotic 
will, continues to augment their sufferings. 

The republics, however, have no reason to regret the 
royal infatuation. The venerable Charles Thomson, secre- 
tary to the Revolutionary congress, once said to me, that 
" the Revolution of 1776 was obtained too cheap, and be- 
fore the acquisition was duly appreciated ; the greatest of its 
evils were produced by natives, who had deserted their coun- 
try, and misled the British ministry ; when the object was 
accomplished, the same class of men, those who had been 
false friends, and those whom the generosity of the republi- 
cans had permitted to return, expected by treachery to ac- 
complish what had failed by arms — they failed, but the mis- 
chief they have done proves the mistake of those whose ge- 
nerosity they abused." The South American republics are 
exempted from this experience by Ferdinand VII. 

15 



114 



CHAPTER VIIL 

Preparations for departure— friendly solicitudes for our safety on the journey-^- 
pictures not exaggerated, — advice and precautions founded on our subsequent 
experience. — No wheel carriages, — no hotels or taverns, — no beds, — how^ to 
provide in various particulars — comfort after fatigue no bad thing,— what 
it is necessary to provide for comfort and safety — hammock, blanket, suitable 
saddle, — a bint to guard against unpleasant company, — oil-cloth cloak a good 
thing. — Romeros what they are, — hints on saddles, bridles, and cruppers™ 
and on the knavery of the muleteers, — maps and itineraries,— the uncertainty 
of computed distances in leagues, — no dependance on muleteers on this sub= 
ject — some functions of alcaldes — direct the supply of mules — the advan- 
tages of this usage — purchase of riding mules — provide for the exigencies of 
the road — experience as to provisions — loading of tnules — hire an hombre de 
provechero and cocinero, — vary their names, — impose on us as to their fitness 
for guides, — travel armed, — mules unladen on halting, — mode of bivouacking in 
.the forests, and on the paramos,— fingers, and thumbs, and calabashes, exis- 
ted before knives, forks, and spoons ; — a good sharp tomahawk, — tinder and 
matches, — good economical articles — prepare to march. 

Our residence at Caracas was now short of a month ; 
intimacies had been formed ; and attentions, kindness, and 
hospitality, had been so constant and so generous, that the 
approach of the period of departure on our journey became 
irksome, Elizabeth had been repeatedly solicited by Se- 
nora Antonia and her daughter, and by Senora Clemente 
and family, and others, to remain till my return to Caracas, 
(as was my first intention) — it was represented that no lady 
had ever attempted such a journey before — that her delicate 
frame was not such as could encounter the fatigues, hazards, 
and privations which were inevitable, from the total want of 
roads, and the desolation of a great part of the route by the 
Spaniards. Indeed, friendly admonitions and persuasions 
were so unceasing — that the perils attending las tierras 
montanoso y seco — los paramos frio — las lluvias pondero&os — 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. US 

las noches peligrosos- — and las llanos acalarados — were so 
constantly rung in our ears, that, although there was really 
no exaggeration in the description, we found ourselves less 
disconcerted when the toils, privations, and fatigues, were 
realized, than we might have been, had they not been de- 
picted and reiterated with so much kindness and truth. 
Elizabeth had not, however, undertaken the journey to be 
deterred by those difficulties of which she had, from reading, 
anticipated before she set out, and her usual reply was, that 
she had her father and brother with her, that she could go 
any where they could go, and live upon whatever would 
subsist them. Indeed, her health, which had been feeble, 
and the restoration of which was a principal object of her 
undertaking the journey, had been already much improved ; 
and at all events, she said, separation from her father was 
out of the question. Accordingly we set about our prepa« 
ratioiiS. 

Travellers in distant countries, owe it to those who are to 
follow in the same route, to afford such information as may- 
enable them to provide against incoveniencies, of the mode 
best to be pursued to facilitate travelling, and to avoid what 
may be inconvenient. It is peculiarly necessary to be pre- 
pared in advance, in a country like South America, which 
may be said to exist now in the same state in which it came 
from the hand of creation. Travelling in Europe or Asia, 
is quite another son of affair. Europe may be traversed 
from one extreme to the other, in one or another kind of 
wheel carriage ; Hindustan may be traversed asleep or 
awake, in a palankeen,; without exerting a muscle ; and if the 
traveller thinks fit, he may read sitting or reclined, rest or 
move on, and is sure to meet with population and subsist- 
ence in abimdance every where, and at a small expence. In 
those countries where Spanish policy has arrested the 
activity of man, and palsied his genius, there are neither 
wheel carriages nor palankeens, the mule is the general 



116 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

bearer of all burdens : it is therefore specially necessary t& 
understand the prices of mules, the mode of obtaining them 
for purchase or hire ; the kind of forage to be procured in 
different parts of the journey ; the kind of subsistence or 
provisions which may or may not be procured at different 
points of the route ; and to be prepared in advance where 
none is to be purchased; the money current in different 
parts of the country, and the probable amount requisite. 
And to render all these things acquirable, where the language 
is not well understood by the traveller, or even where it is, 
a person, as a guide, who understands the two languages, 
and is really acquainted with the route, and the mode of ob- 
taining what is necessary, is absolutely indispensable. 

For the same reason, (that is, because there are neither 
hotels nor beds,) a good hammock, and the best is always 
the cheapest ; the best in Colombia are made at Victo- 
ria, in the valley of Aragua ; yet, it may be more prudent 
to purchase at an advanced price in Caracas, than risk dis- 
appointment at Victoria. So it is with mules, the best kind 
are high priced at Caracas, and lower priced further inland, 
but they are not constantly for sale in small towns, being sent 
to the best market when they are for sale. 

The traveller in these countries, if he passes but a day's 
journey from the capital towns or cities, should not move 
without his hammock. Many persons affect to think that 
the traveller is effeminatb. who is anxious to provide for his 
comforts on the road. I can subsist on as plain and as little, 
food, and as rough cookery, as any man ; but if I can sustain 
my strength, secure a delicious sleep after fatigue, and snatch 
natural pleasure from the midst of difficulties and perils, I am 
not the less able or willing to undergo the hardships which 
are unavoidable. Too much care cannot be bestowed on 
the hammock, blanket, saddle, and saddle- crupper ; they are 
objects called for by economy and comfort, as well as by 
health and security. The hammock should be provided with 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 117 

suitable cords properly fitted, and, I repeat, the best kind are 
the cheapest. The most commodious mode of carrying the 
hammock is rolled like a dragoon's cloak, and thrust into 
an endless bag adapted to its size when rolled, and the cords 
in the midst of the roll ; this bag keeps the hammock clean, 
and, if there should be rain, secures it from wet. A good 
blanket, folded, should cover th^ saddle, and serve, in case 
of rain, as a romero, or cloak ; and if the nights should be 
sharp and keenly cold, as we found them at St. Pedro, only 
one day's march from Caracas, and subsequently at Mucha- 
chees and Pamplona, the blanket is an invaluable part of the 
traveller's baggage. The traveller should make it a positive 
rule not to suffer his blanket or hammock to be transferred 
to the baggage mules for accommodation ; unavoidable ac- 
cidents or the waywardness of the muleteers may separate 
the traveller from his baggage mules ; in which case the 
muleteer will not fail to use them ; and the owner may the 
next night find himself sleeping with disagreeable company, 
A prudent traveller will not repent of providing himself 
with an ample oil-cloth cloak and hood, and at least two full 
capes over the shoulders. In our whole route, of 1274 
miles, we encountered, out of shelter, only three showers ; I 
had anticipated and provided against this exigency, having 
procured a sufficient quantity of a good linen oil-cloth from 
M'Cauley, of Philadelphia. Lieutenant Bache preferred to 
convert his oil-cloth into a romero or poncho ^ as it is called 
in Chile ; it is no more than a square cloth with an aperture 
through its centre to admit the head ; one end hangs in front, 
and the other behind ; the breadth being ample, the shoul- 
ders, arms, and sides, are better covered than by a sleeve, 
while the arms are perfectly free for any required motion. It 
is common to use a blanket for a romero by the natives, but 
there are stuffs of wool, cotton, and fibrous substances, pe- 
culiar to the country, employed this way ; some are of very 
tasty colours, striped and checkered ; and, in some of the 



118 YISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

districts, I have seen a kind of manufacture for romeros 
which I can compare with no article which it so much re- 
sembles as the hair-cloth with which we cover couches. 
But it was absolutely water-proof. The traveller should have 
a fair weather or light chip hat, and another for foul weather ; 
both sufficiently broad to shelter the head and face from, 
rain or sunshine. Senora Bolivar was so kind as to present 
me a hat made of the fibre of the Cuquisias, or Aloe, which 
was so well made as to serve me for all circumstances, not only 
to Bogota, but thence to Carthagena and home, in the worst 
weather ; and, in the hands of a skilful Indian, it might be 
now made a handsome article. 

The saddles and bridles fit for riding mules, should not be 
such as are used in riding horses : and the saddlery sent from 
some of our cities, besides being ill- adapted to the uses of 
the country, as far as I had an opportunity of seeing them, 
were by no means calculated to do credit to the workmanship 
or the morals of American manufacturers. They were un- 
suitable in pattern, and made so feeble, where they should be 
strong, as to render them unmerchantable, and to spoil the 
market. The British, more judicious, obtain information 
and patterns, and adapt the fabrication to the convenience 
and the use of the articles ; and unless the manufacturers of 
the United States provide suitable articles, they will have 
cause to complain of disappointment ; which, as on many 
other occasions, they make a matter of reproach to the 
country which they fail to abuse. The prices exacted are 
alike enormous, and the South Americans will, probably, 
be designated as bad customers, when they do not pay fifty 
or sixty dollars for a saddle that might be bought in any of 
our cities for seven or eight dollars. 

The saddle, for South America, should be high pommel, 
or peak and cantle, like the manege saddles of the Prussian 
school, and sometimes mistakenly called hussar saddles. 
The nature of the country, steep ascents and abrupt de- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 119 

scents, render them not merely comfortable, but more safe 
than the plain English fashioned hunting saddle. The 
crupper staples, and the cruppers, should be of triple the 
strength required on a level country ; and the girths, sur- 
cingle, and martingal, or breast-band, should be stout, and 
strongly affixed by firm swivel staples to the front of the 
saddie-tree ; and spare girths in the baggage will not be re- 
pented. The buckles of the horse-equipments, if made 
merely to sell, may sell too dear, as they put human life to 
hazard. The pack, or cushion of the saddle for the horse 
of sixteen or seventeen hands high, with a broad round back, 
cannot be suitable for the back of any, even the largest rid- 
ing mules. Two days' journey would ruin the best mule,, 
with the horse saddle. The pads, or cushions, should be 
very full and well stuffed, so that the spine of the animal 
shall not be touched by any part of it. For the same rea- 
son portmanteaus, or even a pad with a cloak, cannot be 
carried on the mule, behind the rider, unless he rides in the 
Spanish cavalry saddle, of which the tree sends out two 
limbs behind the cande, three or four inches higher than 
the mule's back ; we had one of those saddles in our party, 
which would be a good pattern, even for the travellers of 
the United States, as these limbs afford an easy space for a 
light portmanteau, without touching the animal's back. 

The strength of the bit and bridle is alike necessary, for, 
although in riding the mule in ordinary, on the plain, or 
the steep, or the descending declivity, the safest course of 
the rider is to hold a loose rein ; there are cases -in which 
the mule will require the pressure of the bit, and the rider's 
hand, which experience only can teach ; inefficient means, 
in such circumstances, often involve destruction. The large 
Spanish bit is in universal use, and, though of a contrary opi- 
nion before this occasion, I acknowledge my conviction of 
its importance, indeed, of its indispensable necessity. The 
rowels of the spur, in general use, are universal, and prove 



120 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

to be the masters of the manege ; the mule is not obedient 
without them : when satisfied of their necessity, I mounted 
them, and I found that it was not necessary always to use 
them, as is required with our small rowelled spurs, constantly, 
with some horses of a bad temper. The attire of panniers, 
and ropes for baggage- mules, are always provided by those 
who hire out the mules — the pilfering of curb chains, ropes, 
horse- halters, spurs, and other loose articles, are as much 
the objects of thievery among muleteers, as among the 
hostlers and jockies of other countries. The domestic or 
attendant should be responsible for such things. 

A good map of the country, and the best itineraries of the 
proposed route, are highly useful. The best maps current, 
it is true, are very deficient, and some extremely erroneous ; 
but none of them can mislead as to the general face of the 
country, or the relative positions of the principal cities, towns^ 
and rivers. 

I had been in possession of much matter of this kind be- 
fore, but in Caracas I procured a copy of an itinerary, which 
I found to be most exact and useful ; it was that of the Ca- 
non of Chile, Jose Cortes Madrigada, in the year 1811-12. 
He marked his morning hour of departure; his breakfasting 
stage, his dining stage, and where he slept, and the computed 
distance of each day's journey ; which last, though the only 
uncertain part of the itinerary, I shall preserve, and give the 
exact copy in the .appendix No. I. Another itinerary of a 
military officer. No. II, which will serve to compare with the 
first, is also given ; as I am speaking of itineraries, I shall give 
the route from Bogota by the Magdalena, No. Ill, with such 
other information of the same kind, as I transcribe my jour- 
nal, and such illustrations as may render them useful. 

The traveller may find in Colombia, what is not unfre- 
quent in what are called old countries, a constant contra- 
diction as to the distance between places, as he will seldom 
find two whom he may inquire of on the route, who vvill agree 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 121 

within two or three, or half a dozen miles ; and the last to 
be trusted in this particular are the muleteers generally, and 
some of the alcaldes, both of whom have sometimes an in- 
terest in adding to or taking away from the account. Some 
notes of the various modes of stating or estimating, or gues- 
sing the distances in leagues, will be given in another place. 

The mention of alcaldes renders it proper to notice the re- 
lation in which they stand to travellers. The title answers to 
the general term magistrate, but that particular office referred 
to is the alcaldes of cities and towns, whose functions em- 
brace local police, the administration of justice summarily 
in the lesser districts of civil administration, and, as part of 
the duties of police, the protection of strangers. It is to the 
alcaldes (where the place is not exclusively a military post) 
that application is to be made for the supply of mules, and 
for lodgings, which the alcalde is not bound to provide in any 
other way than to issue his orders ; and I have been told that 
the alcalde is bound to keep a registry of mules within the 
boundsof his jurisdiction, and from these he orders in rota- 
tion the number required, leaving it to him for whose use 
they are, to agree upon the compensation. There is usually 
a market rate or price per number of leagues ; and here, if 
the muleteer and the alcalde have an understanding, the route 
becomes more or less long or short, as the traveller appears 
to be uninformed. Gil Bias, in relation to muleteers, is no 
fiction ; those of Spain have their pendants in South America, 
though it is no more than truth to say, that there is less of 
knavery of that class among the alcaldes in Colombia than in 
Spain, though I have met a few who would rival the worst of 
them. I have found more than twenty to one, fair, honour- 
able, and obliging men. 

The exigencies of the revolution, which rendered it im- 
practicable to give the institutions of Colombia a new orga- 
nization in all the necessary details, went no farther in chang- 
ing the municipal and social forms, than became indispensa- 

16 



122 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ble to the good order of society. The administrative power 
retained the same gradations. Cities, towns, and villages, 
which are the concerns with which we have here to do, were, 
as in former times, governed, some by a military comman- 
der, others by cabildos or corporations, who were elective, 
and in which the alcaldes were chosen by the cabildos ; some 
villages and towns had their alcaldes, first, second, third, and 
even a fourth, where the population required them. 

The functions of the alcalde more remarkably resemble 
those of the Cauze in Asia than our mayor; for, besides his 
authority in matters of police and small affairs of a pecuniary 
nature, which he decides summarily, he is the guardian of the 
police, and the director of all matters that are not exercised 
by authorities of a higher degree, such as judges and military 
commanders ; with their jurisdiction he does not interfere ; 
but all that they have not authority to do, he has authority to 
perform under the recognized laws and customs. 

When we were about to proceed on our route, as pass- 
ports continued to be necessary from the then state of war, 
we applied to the superior power, and obtained our passport; 
the next recourse was to the alcalde ; for there is at Ca- 
racas a military governor, chief alcalde and subordinate al- 
caldes de barrio, or alcaldes of wards. 

The application to the alcalde specifies the number of per- 
sons, principals and domestics, and riding mules required, 
and for each load of baggage, a mule; the destination to be 
mentioned, and the time proposed to set out. The alcalde's 
duty is to order mules, and to see that they be provided. 
Each alcalde keeps a registry of the mules in his jurisdic- 
tion, which is of advantage to the public, to the traveller, 
and to the owner of the mules ; for, as the purpose of keep- 
ing mules is for hire, though the call for mules may be oc- 
casionally an inconvenience to the owner ; yet, when they 
are required for travellers, the charge is usually more than 
when called forth on the public service or private mercantile 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 123 

transport. No fee is paid for passports under the republic ; 
it was otherwise under the monarchy, and frequently a source 
of great vexation and exaction. When the alcalde's order 
issues, the ariero (or mule owner) presents himstif and 
makes his bargain — and the price, though there is a custo- 
mary price per number of leagues, is also influenced by the 
apparent quality, or the ignorance of the language, or any 
exigence or eagerness manifested by the traveller to get for- 
ward. The muleteers, owners and drivers, are usually as 
shrewd, and sometimes as knavish, as the itinerant assistants 
in other countries. 

We purchased four prime mules at S160, 150, 120, 110, 
one for each of us to ride, and the fourth as a relief mule, 
which we did with mature advisement, and found, upon ex- 
perience, the pecuniary advantage, as well as the comfort, in 
following the advice, in passing the " antres vast and de- 
serts wild" of the Andes. We required a man to provide 
food and forage, and cook, and, as the stealing of mules from 
travellers was not unfrequent during the war, it was prefer- 
able to hire a servant to take care of them, than risk the loss 
of a mule in the deserts, remote from places where mules 
might be, or not be, procurable. We procured two per- 
sons for these purposes. As chocolate is not only a nutri- 
tious but refreshing beverage, and easily prepared after the 
manner of the country, the traveller should ascertain the dis- 
tance he may have to travel, and the quantity of chocolate 
and other things required daily for the required distance ; 
bread, where it is to be had ; poultry and eggs may be pur- 
chased on the road; but where the war has depopulated ex- 
tensive districts, and the forests and mountains present vast 
intervals uninhabited ; the value of a guide and the accuracy 
of his knowledge are beyond price. For the first hundred 
miles, or from Caracas through the valley of Aragua, pro- 
visions are to be had at very moderate prices, as the towns 
and villages are numerous, and ever, after the war were opulent, 



124 VISIT TO COLOMIJIA. 

when we passed through, though the marks of the deso- 
lation of war were very evident. Fine fruit, particularly 
oranges, and sweet bananas, are abundant, wholesome, and 
cheap ; and it will be very prudent, where they are plenty, 
to provide in advance. No wine is to be had but in pri- 
vate houses ; but we found no inconvenience from the 
scarcity ; those who require it must carry it ; but the cost 
and damage will too probably overbalance the gratification 
or use expected. New milk may be had on the road, but 
as the cows are never milked but once a day, and the calf 
always attends the cow, and the richness of the pastures ren- 
ders the milk not so mild and palatable as in our temperate 
climate, it will be always prudent to boil or dilute it with 
water ; but to use little in the warm plains, though we have 
often taken it fresh from the cow, equal in sweetness, and 
palatable as our own : butter is not to be had but in the 
capital cities. The edible roots of the country are fine, va- 
rious, and abundant in every inhabited place. 

The lading of the mules is a very important consideration ; 
if a mule be overladen, the traveller is retarded in his pro- 
gress, or the mule may break down where no other is to 
be had — so that not only delay and expense, but loss of 
baggage may be the consequence. The usual and fairest 
load required by the muleteer is about 250 pounds weight. 
The best mode of carrying baggage is in two leather trunks, 
(all leather, with good locks and keys) — so that the weight 
may be equally distributed. The mules furnished on hire 
are not always the best, and it requires to guard against this 
contingency. An acquaintance with the language is of the 
greatest advantage, as well for obtaining provisions, as for a 
knowledge of the right road. As far as San Carlos, it is open, 
spacious, and well marked by the beaten track of mules, 
who concentrate in that neighbourhood, or between that city 
and Valencia, on the route to Puerto Cabello, the Valley of 
Aragua, or Caracas. After leaving that city, on the routes 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 125 

south-west or north-west, the country becomes wild, and the 
courses perplexed. A knowledge of the language may ena- 
ble the traveller to obtain directions, but without this know- 
ledge, an homhre de provechoy or purveyor, to procure 
subsistence and forage, to wait upon the alcaldes, to guard 
against imposition, and to perform domestic services, is in- 
dispensable ; a stranger may very easily, or almost to a cer- 
tainty, go astray, if he moves at all. We had found a native 
of Caracas, who called himself Manuel, recommended him- 
self by an assurance that he had been a domestic of the liber- 
tador's, and said he was perfectly acquainted with the whole 
route, that no man understood better than himself the care of 
mules or horses, and that he would ask no more than eight 
dollars a month, to which we agreed. A St. Domingo negro 
applied under the name of John, who said he knew every 
thing, and had been every where, cooked a fricasee as well 
as any Frenchman, and spoke Spanish, French, and English, 
like a native. We found, very soon, that Manuel's name 
was Vincente, and that John's name was Pedro; that neither 
of them had ever been beyond Truxillo ; but both turned 
out to be excellent cooks, and altogether not bad servants. 
Pedro's English was not good, but his Spanish was negocia- 
ble. Their ignorance of the road was, by an accidental oc- 
currence, rendered to us unnecessary, as will be seen on our 
leaving Valencia. 

Although we had no cause to complain of danger or mo- 
lestation on the whole route, we were advised, and indeed I 
had anticipated the advice, to go armed ; and to assume a 
military appearance, which, however, had its inconveniences. 
The state of war had sent abroad many vagabonds, but as 
lieutenant Bache and myself, and our domestics, wore sabres, 
and we had good pistols in display, and gained an auxiliary 
on the way, probably our state of preparation may not have 
been useless. 



126 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The mules are unladen whenever the traveller halts to dine 
or sleep ; if in the forest, on the paramo, the plains, or the side 
of a rivulet, and the country is every where exuberantly 
watered, the servant in charge, of the mules forms them 
into a circle, and each mule must have a strong halter for the 
purpose. The forage is placed before them, and the fire is 
made and the food prepared the while. A trunk formed 
our table, and others formed our chairs, and in this way we 
have partaken of a most deUghtful breakfast, dinner, or sup- 
per ; sometimes, in the warmer regions, hanging our ham- 
mocks on the trees of the forest, and taking a sweet sleep in 
the pure air arid the shade of the trees. Our feast, on such 
occasions, consisted of poultry and eggs, cooked according 
to the judicious caprices of our coc'mcro. Eggs and poul- 
try are standing articles — sometimes we purchased a kid ; 
one of our people skinned, and displayed it ; what was not 
wanted for the instant was tied, exposed to the open air, and 
carried in that manner untainted, there being none of those 
flies which injure meat in other climates. Vessels of more 
than a pint measure are common in the country for prepar- 
ing chocolate, but it would be prudent to be provided with 
good tin vessels, knives, forks, and spoons ; all that I had 
proposed to provide was not completed — I had committed 
to a friend the charge of this provision of these conveniencies, 
but my friend, as he afterwards with great simplicity ac- 
knowledged, had not provided knives, forks, or spoons, be- 
cause he concluded that wherever meat or soup were to be 
had, those instruments would naturally be found also ; the 
earthen platter of the country, and the cooking utensils of 
red pottery, supplied the place of utensils more refined ; and 
the calabash shell furnished us with turtiimas^ of various 
sizes for water-cups, soup-basons, milk-cups, and even 
substitutes for spoons ; they served to sip our chocolate or 
coffee in the midst of the forests, our lemonade in the mid- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 127 

day, and our punch when no better beverage was to be had 
but the raw milk of the paramos ; and good wine, when it 
could be had, lost none of its flavour by being drank out of 
a calabash cup. 

The traveller will often have use for a good sharp toma- 
hawk, which may be hung in an eye-strap at the bow of the 
saddle ; if he is under the necessity of sleeping in the woods, 
or making a fire for the cookery ; or if he wishes to hang 
his hammock conveniently for a fellow-traveller, or near his 
mules, the tomahawk saves time as well as promotes com- 
fort. A flint and tinder-box, and steel, with matches, serve 
the same purposes of facility and efficiency in travelling ac- 
commodation, and without them he may go to his hammock 
supperless, or sufl'er privation in addition to fatigue. 

The 13th of November was devoted to visiting and taking 
leave of our kind friends, completing our equipments, and 
preparing for our departure on the follov*'ing morning. 



128 



CHAPTER IX. 

Leave Caracas on the fourteenth of November — friendly cavalcade— bank of 
the Guayra — venerable family of Toro — Antimano — pass La Vieja^ — reach 
Las Juntas-.-the junction of the San Pedro and Macaro with the Guayra— 
halt at SLpulpureia — first taste of domestic cookery — country articles — a posada 
or tavern for muleteers — the social economy — a r^resco — ordered without 
garlic in vain — moderate charges — refresco a fine subject of fun at parting — 
the heights of Higuerota — Bonavista — ^^view of Caracas — excavated road — a 
fine specimen of asbestos — General Paez and suite — meet young troops — 
above the clouds — appearance — Bolivar the theme of songs every where — 
laborious and dangerous descent — forsake the clouds, and see the verdant 
eai'th — the deep blue canopy appears — warmer atmosphere — reach San Pedro 
— adventures there — piercing cold night— Sacristy of the Church — hang up 
our hammocks— effigy of the virgin — no disturbance all night — moved through 
Loxas— more soldiers — characteristics of — Cuquisias — CoDsejo — halt to refresh 
—the river Tuy, its course. — Valley of Aragua — appearances — lodged — order 
of our establishment — hospitality— hammocks how hung—moved early the 
sixteenth — appearance of the country — flowering shrubs — mountain range — 
peculiar features of — limpid rills, — San Mateo. — Estate of the President Bol- 
ivar — fine sugar-mill, and plantation— halt there — entertained. 

Our departure on the moming of the fourteenth had col- 
lected, according to the usage of the country, a numerous 
cavalcade of our friends, with the intention of escorting us 
out of town, as had been done at our coming. The route 
lies over the Garaguata, by the ample bridge before noticed, 
and leads through a spacious street in the quarter of St. 
Juan, to a considerable distance beyond the regular line of 
the streets ; the road had been paved three or four miles be- 
yond the inhabited range, and had a gradual ascent ; but 
the advantage of good paving was here manifest, in the ex- 
cavation of the road by rains, where the pavement had been 
broken up ; the firm pavement standing on its first surface a 
foot or eighteen inches above the surface now washed away, 
which had been forrqerly a part of the same causeway. We 
soon reached the plunging current of the Garaguata, the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 129 

neighbourhood of Antimano, seven miles from Caracas, em- 
bosomed in verdant hills, and rich in its tillage ; after a tem- 
porary halt, to pay our respects to the venerable general To- 
re and his family, who resided there, we soon crossed 
the Guayra, leaving the small hamlet of La Vega on our 
right, as we entered the little valley of Antimano ; and 
reached Las Juntas, or the junction ; the little river Macaro, 
and the less rivulet of San Pedro, here uniting with the gur- 
gling Guayra, plunging in its descent over a bed of small 
rocks, and bounded by many rocks of more magnitude. 
Las Juntas is about twelve miles from Caracas, somewhat 
elevated above the valley ; there are but a few houses, the 
principal of which is a pulpureia^ literally a huckster-shop^ in 
which the ordinary articles of vinegar, oil, candles, lard, 
seeds, and garlic, are sold, and where we had our first spe- 
cimen of the entertainment, cookery, and guarapa, with 
which we were to be thenceforward regaled ; for there was a 
posada or country tavern contiguous, or rather part of the 
pulpureia. Here our friends alighted about nine o'clock, 
Groupes of muleteers and mules were busy in taking their 
refresco, and I had much amusement in witnessing the cu- 
riosity and wonder of my young fellow-travellers, and I shall 
describe, once for all, the interior, the entertainment, and 
the accommodations of a pulpureia and a posada ; for the 
manners and entertainment at this place, so near the city, 
was such as prevails among the most distant population. 

The establishment consistedof a long thatched or tiled shed, 
parallel with the road ; one half of the front was open to man 
and beast, the other half presented a long counter, upon which 
were displayed, as the principal commodity, a multitude of 
ropes of garlic, strings of sausages, and puddings of formida- 
ble magnitude, and through their thin transparent coats re- 
vealing the excellencies of the fat and the lean pork, and 
the garlic, of which they were fashioned out in nearly equal 
quantities ; they were rather dusky resemblances of the 

17 



130 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

columns of the Capitol, in the variety of their shades ; coils 
of Tajo, that is ropes of dried beef, concerning which 1 shall 
speak hereafter ; tallow candles hung against the wall ; and 
the other merchandize were disposed, without much regard 
to shew or order, on massy shelves. The pulpero vv^as em- 
ployed very busily in serving his rapid succession of cus- 
tomers, while an assistiente^ stationed at a large jar of some 
twenty gallons measure, served out to his class of customers 
a liquid which my turn had not yet come to taste ; it was 
Guarapa, and when I come to relate how partial I came to 
be to this fermented liquor (when nothing else could be 
had), the future traveller may anticipate, however deli- 
cate his palate or choice in his liquors, that he will cer- 
tainly find himself in a position to render Guarapa desira- 
ble. 

Our friends, resolving to enjoy the first effects of the fine 
light air, into which we had ascended, ordered a refresco for 
us and company ; and, desirous of partaking of the good 
things of the new world, gravely directed it should be the 
best, and without garlic. I suppose my articulation rendered 
my injunctions unintelligible, for we were shewn into 
what may be called a room, because there was a space of 
about seven feet by six ; a sort of old door on a truck about 
four feet from the floor, which was intended for the table j 
there was only one chair, and that had lost half a leg, per- 
haps in the war ; a large wooden dish was placed on the ta- 
ble, as I may call it ; some of us contrived means to place 
ourselves in a position for the attack on the salt pork junks, 
from which issued vapour and perfume of garlic, quite 
enough to satisfy curiosity. I tasted it, and it was actually- 
well cui'ed with salt, and if the dish had been something, to 
appearance, cleaner, and the garlic dispensed with, I could 
have made a good breakfast of it. Finding that chocolate 
and some eggs could be had in the pulpurem, and some 
Caracas bread, this I preferred to the casava, which v/as 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 131 

brought to table in a pile, with some cups of tolerable Ca- 
taloiiia, we continued to finish our refresco — without very 
much reducing the contents of the wooden dish. 

If the table was not covered with delicacies, the charge 
was moderate ; and we prepared to separate from our friends, 
who partook with us in the pleasure, and the fun produced 
at our feast. We mounted, and pursued our way up 
the winding ravine, which forms the road to the mountain 
of Higiierota, and reached Buenavista, said to be five thou- 
sand icet above the ocean, from whence we had a delightful 
vie vv of Caracas. The morning was charming, and luxuri- 
antly refreshing ; and we frequently turned round to take a 
last look at a city where we had found so many friends, parta- 
ken of so much kindness and hospitality ; and winding our 
way, indicated by our silence the emotions and anticipations 
of the past and the future. 

The ascent had been here graduated by labour into a 
spacious road, of sixty feet broad, the sides, impending banks 
of earth. Lieut. Bache discovered some specimens o^ asbes- 
tos of considerable length of fibre, which was in great abun- 
dance. Soon afterwards a number of youths with musquets 
met us as we descended the mountain ; and soon after a 
general officer and his suite, dashing desperately down 
the steep descent ; it was general Paez, who simply touched 
his hat to us without halting. We soon after met a numerous 
detachment of soldiers, marching without order towards 
Caracas ; and from a sub-officer, whom I addressed, learned 
who they were that passed us, and that the troops he was 
with, were principally recruits marching to the depot ; and 
with more than usual communicativeness, observed that the 
general was not going to Caracas with troops for nothing. 

We were soon involved in a thick mist, which to the 
first seeming had fallen upon us, but in fact the clouds were 
suspended in an horizontal range, that left an unclouded space 
beneath, out of which we ascended, and entered the stratum 



132 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

of clouds ; from which we very soon emerged again into a 
bright sun, and, while or heads appeared to reach above 
the clouds, our bodies were yet involved in the shade. 
This moment of immersion presented a most sublime spec- 
tacle ; we seemed to stand upon an island in a vast, but 
tranquil ocean ; no part of the country was visible but the 
summit of the long ridge along which we travelled ; and the 
sides of its really steep precipices appeared to be but the 
shores of the sea; while our course above the horizon of that 
sea, was in a bright but not offensive light. The ridges of 
Los Teques, which border on, and separate this ridgt from 
the Caribbean sea,were not discernible, though unquestionably 
higher than the upper surface of this cloudy horizon ; we 
passed a posada, where muleteers were carousing, and the 
name of Bolivar was, as usual, the burden of their song. 

Having passed the summit, and commenced our descent, 
we now seemed to enter a veil of vapour, which continued 
to involve us a considerable way down. The road on the 
summit was a level well beaten track, our route now was 
through a rugged ravine, the surface, partly covered with a 
rubble of angular stones ; the earth, which was a grey gritty 
clay, had been washed away, and knolls of a more adhesive 
yellow earth were left standing in the road ; which rendered the 
descent not only fatiguing but dangerous, and I found it 
it prudent, in passing some of those knolls, to throw my- 
self off my mule, rather than risque worse consequences, 
which I accomplished without any unpleasantness besides. 

We had now descended below the stratum of clouds once 
more, and could enjoy, with great satisfaction, the richly 
verdant country, now and then illuminated by a sunbeam 
breaking through the clouds. The vapour on a sudden 
cleared entirely away, and the deep blue canopy was unspot- 
ted, but the atmosphere became warmer with the sunbeams, 
and the sierra stood in dark sublimity, on our right, ranging 
from west to east ; and the mountains we had passed seem- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 133 

ed to turn their backs upon the sun, and fling their long sha- 
dows obhquely across the valley. 

We had sauntered above the clouds without any other 
thoughts than those which were produced by the grandeur 
and beauty of the scenes before us ; but the difficulties of the 
descent retarded us so much, that it was an hour after night 
set in before we gained the brow of the deep valley of San 
Pedro, computed to be about thirty miles from Caraccas. 
We had here some new experience of the importance of 
good servants. Vincente, being a native of the country, was 
dispatched in advance to seek the alcalde, procure accom- 
modations, and refreshments. This valley, though very deep, 
has its line of direction apparently from north to south, and 
a piercing cold air passed through it, which we felt the more, 
as we were much fatigued, hungry, and in need of repose. 
Having descended to the village, Pedro found a posada, 
which we entered, and there found that Vincente had ordered 
a supper : two wooden dishes were laid on a table containing 
some rank sausages, two cold roast fowls, one of which had 
been winged by some preceding sharp-shooter ; some coarse 
bread, and two bottles of muddy Catalonia wine. The in- 
variable fragrance of Spanish cookery was not yet so fami- 
liar as to find acceptance, even with keen appetites ; as 
before, we shifted with the bread and bad wine, which, as a 
substitute for the dead stock, was to us as welcome as Bur- 
gundy. We however obtained some chocolate, and were as 
content as if our entertainment had been luxurious. 

Vincente had not succeeded in finding the alcalde ; but 
Pedro had obtained some bundles of young sugar cane, 
which came from the warm valleys, and is the common food 
of mules, as barley is the forage of the cooler regions, as well 
as molocha, that is, the stalks of maize in that state before they 
shoot out ears. The maize in grain is also given for food. 

Vincente at length returned with an order for quarters, and 
it was no other than the sacristy of the village church, which 



134j visit to COLOMtilA. 

we had left half a mile above the village as we descended. 
The domestics having procured a torch, v\'e soon entered the 
church yard, which, under the circumstances of novelty in 
which we were, had a strange and ludicrous appearanct. Our 
baggage mules, with a torch, led the way, we followed in 
Indian file, the lieutenant first, Elizabeth next, and I brought 
up the rear ; another torch came soon after. The piety of the 
concerned in the church had placed on the stone pillars of 
the fence which surrounded the place a number of human 
skulls ; the sacristy stood at the north or extreme end, and 
thus we passed to our appointed quarters. The sacristy was 
about twenty feet in length, and twelve or thirteen in breadth, 
and adjacent was another smaller room ; we hung up our 
three hammocks for the first time here, and Elizabeth's ham- 
mock being placed in the middle, our two domestics, and 
the muleteer who was attached to the baggage mules, occu- 
pied a corridor, where they slept on cow-hides, having made 
a fire in front as a security for the mules, for which forage 
had been provided for the night. The cold during this night 
was intense, notwithstanding a figure of the Virgin, large as 
life, but rather ordinary in costume, stood at the end of the 
chamber in which we slept. 

It was our purpose to move before five in the morning of 
the 15th, but we could not get the mules laden at that time, 
and having in the mean while procured some chocolate for our 
road stock, we moved off about seven o'clock, ascended the 
mountain of Cuquisias, passing through the village of Loxas 
without halting ; ascended through another water- worn ravine, 
and were passed by about two hundred soldiers straggling 
slowly towards Caracas, the greater portion of whom appear- 
ed to be about fourteen or fifteen years old, but full of heed- 
less gaiety. Their cheerfulness and alacrity surprized me ; 
the muskets they carried were of the London Tower pattern, 
and must have weighed nine or ten pounds ; they wore cross 
belts, cartridge boxes, and bayonets; a leather japanned cap, a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 135 

shirt and pantaloons of oznaburgs, and a jacket of duck or 
Russia, which once had coloured facings. They had none 
of them shoes, but several wore a sort of sandal called pa- 
ragattas. About two miles farther west, where there was a 
level road, we met a corps of about the same number march- 
ing in good order in double files ; and after them, at various 
distances, several women, some on foot, and some mounted 
with the military accompaniments for cooking, and as usual, 
young children. We entered Cuquizias at half past ten, and 
here took some of the country beverage called chichay and 
eat a luncheon from our own stock. 

The village of Cuquizias consists of not more than a dozen 
cottages, scattered on the ridge which it occupies ; the sum- 
mit is prolonged in a south-west and north-east direction, 
and is no where more than 100 to 150 yards in breadth; 
the sides are steep and precipitous — the plains, on each 
side, present the most exquisite pictures of nature; di- 
versified by cultivation, and hamlets scattered at unequal 
distances. We reached Consejo, at the foot of Cuquizias, 
at twenty-five minutes past one, and the heat of the day in- 
duced us to halt and refresh there — as we were now within 
a short distance of several towns. We halted at a well-or- 
dered puipureia, where there was an active traffic in pur- 
chase and sale ; I slung up my hammock, at the invitation 
of the hospitable pulpero, in the spacious store, which ap- 
peared to be a central resort from the surrounding country. 
He was an obliging man, he presented my daughter some 
excellent bananas and oranges; and, with some wine, we 
found ourselves, by three o'clock, fit to march. The pul- 
pero would not accept any remuneration ; he was frank, po- 
lite, and communicative, and, on being informed we were 
North Americans, his fine black eyes appeared to scintillate — 
he took some pains to direct us, and appeared much inte- 
rested in us. 



Visit to Colombia^ 

The river Tuy passes under a rude wooden bridge, elose to 
the pulpureia ; a limpid stream, having its source in the valley 
of San Pedro, about thirty feet broad, winds from the north- 
east, chattering over its pebbled bed ; and, turning oft be- 
fore us to the west, holds its way at the foot of the group of 
Cuquizias, which here presents a receding slope on the south 
side of the luxuriant valley which it irrigates, and gives 
life, and beauty, and vigor to the plantations of sugar-cane, 
that occupy its sides ; when again winding round the base 
of this group of these ever-green mountains, takes a direction 
south, variably south-east, and meandering through the val. 
leys of Tocata, Cura, Sabanade Ocumare, St. Lucia, and The- 
resa, unites the volume of its accumulating waters with the 
Guayra ; and affords, among the other benefits of its beauti- 
ful stream, water sufficient for the navigation of small boats, 
upon which the excellent cacao, coffee, sugar, and other pro- 
ductions of the course which it fertilizes, are transported to 
the neighbourhood of Cape Codera, and is by light craft 
thence diffused along the coast east and west, where cargoes 
are made up. The Tuy, and the Tuyco, which falls into 
the Gulf of Triste, west of Puerto Cabello, are the only rivers 
between Barbaruta, west of Puerto Cabello, and the Yara- 
cuy, in Cumana, that are navigable. The Tuy is susceptible 
of considerable improvement, by the mere application of ma- 
nual labour to the removal of the obstructions formed by 
the accumulations of forest trees, which have been deposit- 
ed by iloods, and which produce most pernicious inunda^ 
tions, in seasons when the rains are more than usually heavy 
in the mountains, whose waters are concentrated in its mean- 
dering bed. The Spanish authorities, in 1803, caused Pe- 
dro Caranga, a skilful engineer, to make a survey and report 
on the practicability of improving the Tuy, with a view to 
revenue, by preventing those desolations by flood, which 
repeatedly destroyed many rich plantations. His report shew- 
ed, not only the greater advantages, but the little expense or 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 137 

difficulty required to accomplish it ; but the Caracas influ- 
ence, calculating that they must be ruined, if the adjacent 
valleys prospered, the affair was buried in the archives, until 
a more generous and wise judgment was directed to it since 
the revolution ; believing that the improvement and enrich- 
ment of any part of the same country must, under a liberal 
system of government, benefit the whole, it continues to be 
one of the objects upon which the public providence will 
act, now that peace and independence admit the faculties of 
the republic to be taken from war and directed to economy. 
The Tuy forms the line of separation from the valley of Ara- 
gua and the road lying on its right bank, until it suddenly 
winds off to the south within a few miles of Victoria. From 
my own observations, I believe the Tuy and lake of Valen- 
cia may be united and rendered navigable. 

Our mules had abundance of fodder, and, after a hearty 
repast of molocha^ sweetened oft' their meal with the most 
delicate green sugar canes, and on this, as on many other oc- 
casions, we found the benefits of such good provender in the 
proportionate alacrity of our mules. 

This part of the valley of Aragua presented a different as- 
pect from that of the city of Caracas — the space was not here 
a uniformly flat extensive plain, but consisted of what we 
should call rolling ground, hills and dales, in which light and 
shade gave infinite diversity of field and fruit, deep and dark 
verdure relieved the foreground, and the enamelled leaves 
of numerous plants cast forth a tremulous light, giving 
the whole that kind of effect which the bright tints of Chi- 
nese pictures yield, while the receding shade of the hills in 
the distance, south-east and south, presented a line which 
appeared orderly, well defined, and unbroken ; but this was 
the illusion of distance and indistinctness ; we had in a few 
days after a demonstration both of the enormous elevation 
and broken texture of thes<^ spurs of the Cordillera, which 

18 



138 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

appeared as airy and light as the lace on a lady's morning 
cap. 

After half an hour's ride along the brink of the pebbled 
bed of the Tuy, it disappeared in the opening of an appa- 
rently narrow chasm ; but our route continued nearly a dead 
level. Sugar, indigo, maize, and cacao plantations, and 
vast fields of maize covered all within the range of our ob- 
servation I cultivation was both active and prosperous, 
and, did not a brighter sky and the presence of tropical 
plants arrest the impression, we might suppose ourselves in 
Pennsylvania at harvest time. 

It was half past five, and being recommended by a friend 
to spend a day with an officer resident at Victoria, we sent 
Vincent forward, who soon found the place; the officer 
however had gone on a visit to Achaguas, a kind of Mont- 
pelier ; but the house-keeper, on presenting ourselves, threw 
open the doors, prayed us to alight and walk in, and without 
waiting for an answer, directed the servants to the corals and 
how to provide forage. The coral is simply a yard or en- 
closure for horses, mules, or other animals, and, as there is no 
ingress or egress from any house, but through the one gate, 
the coral comes within the domestic precincts, and animals 
are kept without danger of going or being led astray. 

We had entered Victoria by the Calle de Colombia, which 
lies north and south ; it is the main street. The external 
appearance of the houses is cleanly, neat, and handsome ; 
though there are none of more than one story, they are lofty 
and spacious, as is most suitable in a warm climate. The 
white-washing outside and inside I found to be here a stated 
periodical practice ; and there were numerous shops, in 
which, like the stores in our interior, were exhibited and 
sold all sorts of commodities, food, raiment, and frippery. 

We had already found it expedient, though small as our 
corps was, to distribute and assign duties, so that no excuse 
for neglects should be shifted ; to Vincent was assigned, as a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 139 

native, and having something of personal vanity about him, to 
be our agent vidth the alcaldes, in the business of mules, 
quarters, and whatever appertained to him. To Pedro was as- 
signed the purveyorship and cookery. The first step in quar- 
ters was to select the positions for our hammocks, so that 
Elizabeth should have the most suitable place, and ours be so 
contiguous as to leave no cause of apprehension. After the 
hanging of the hammocks, the standing order was chocolate 
immediately, and as it is consumed by all descriptions, and 
made up in balls ready sweetened, the operation does not 
require more than five minutes, as a single boiling with a 
due agitation in the process is sufficient. We therefore took 
care to be provided against any scarcity that might happen 
in our route ; but the trusty domestic had acted in the way 
I presume her master. Major M'Laughlin, was accustomed 
to do ; chocolate was presented to us before Pedro could 
provide his boilers. That we should not tax the civility of 
the domestic in her master's absence, we had directed Pedro 
to prepare a good ragout of fowls, and no one certainly 
could do it better ; but the domestic appeared to think her- 
self outwitted, perhaps her services disparaged, and resolved 
to be even with the cook, by laying some ready prepared 
rice-milk, eggs, and wheaten bread, with some decanters of 
excellent wine on the table. These little incidents are given, 
not because they are particularly important, but it is because 
they indicate the character and manners of society. Eggs 
and omelets, spinach and other vegetables, entered into the 
routine of our travelling fare ; and sometimes mutton, kid, 
and very well cured salt pork, made a further variety. It 
may be proper in this place to notice a particular that might 
not be anticipated by a stranger. In building houses, where 
the climate is warm, and hammocks the most convenient and 
comfortable mode of going to rest, stout iron rings are af- 
fixed in an eye bolt or swivel, about ten feet from the ground 
on the opposite sides of the sleeping-rooms ; cords for sling. 



140 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ing are usually purchased with the hammock j and, as there 
is a little knavery in all trades, there is some skill required 
in choosing such cords, and it is a part of the knavery of 
muleteers and others, to appropriate such cords, if care be 
not taken in putting up the hammock to roll it firm, and 
place the cords in the inside. The hammock usually hangs, 
when occupied, about three or four feet from the floor ; 
higher according to inclination. Certainly, in a climate 
where acute cold is unknown, no bed is so comfortable as a 
hammock after a few days habitude. 

We were mounted and on our march, before six o'clock 
on the 15th, in the splendid valley of Aragua; the space oc- 
cupied by the whole range of vision appeared a level plain, 
here and there diversified by clumps of lofty trees, a fantas- 
tic thicket clothed in flowers of brilliant tints, but particu- 
larly the morning glorify which, in different places, assumed 
different colours, so that I have seen in some of the coffee 
plantations desolated by the Spaniards, the elegant cones 
that had escaped, covered with this beautiful sycophant ; 
the diflPerent trees with different colours from the rest ; and 
this beautiful dress of the wild tufts and low shrubs conti- 
nued where the temperature was the same, through our 
whole journey. The hedges were formed by the accidental 
direction of a mule track, which seemed as if like quicksets 
they had been planted by art, and all wore this brilliant livery. 

The mountains, in the valley of Caracas, bore a strange- 
ness of figure and order, that I had not seen in any 
other part of the world ; this dissimilarity became in the 
valley of Aragua, and as far as the extent of the range east 
of Barquisimeto, more remarkable, and such as I had not 
seen described by any writer, so as to leave an impression of 
the characteristic forms, and their conformity in a long 
range ; I shall give my impressions hereafter. The rivulets 
which crossed our path, flowing from the chain on our right 
which separated us from the ocean, were numerous and re^ 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 141 

ireshing, limpid, cool, and murmuring; they led their way 
to the rich plantations which filled the spaces on our left; our 
route being west of south, variably a point more or less west 
of south. 

One of those rills, more loud and gurgling than its neigh- 
bours, attracted our notice ; it was quarrelling with a small 
brick arch of excellent mason work, but either the workman 
did not fit the stream, or the stream had outgrown the arch, 
end seemed to wrangle for a passage. The water which is- 
sued from beneath the arch, now spread into more than a 
dozen small rivulets, and wound their way round the foot of 
a projecting mound or spur of the mountain, which also in- 
tercepted our view to the south. 

A very spacious, though rather dilapidated building, sur- 
rounded by a wall of pita, stood on the brow of the hill 
which the road separated from its main stock ; the building 
had certainly been battered by the war, and violence had 
thrown some parts down ; it still indicated some former opu- 
lence ; it was as commodious as our Pennsylvania barns, and 
though we could not discover what it had been, or to whom 
it belonged, from the passing muleteers, our progress 
brought us into a position which opened to our view, a quar- 
ter of a mile below, an immense field of sugar cane, which 
appeared to cover the plain as far as the eye could reach ; 
beneath the foot of the hill which we were now descending, 
appeared a busy scene, crowds of men and mules coming 
and going from a group of buildings which bore the aspect 
of freshness and prosperity ; at the north-east angle of the 
spacious sugar field, the valley appeared about two miles 
broad, and a handsome river flowed on its south-east side to 
the eastward ; the extent in the prolongation could not be 
less than four or five miles, I was told five. We descended 
to the valley, and found this scene of activity, which did not 
cease for several hours that we halted there, was a sugar- 
mill, from which the mules were carrying away loaves of 



143 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

fine white sugar, of much greater magnitude than is usual 
with us ; the loaves were placed in bags, and the bags slung 
across the mules. The road at the bottom wound off to the 
south round a steep but not very elevated hill, on the sum- 
mit of which stood a handsome pavilion, which, though not in 
entire ruin, was in some respects shattered, and to appearance 
uninhabited ; the style of the building was tasty and neat ; the 
fences in its rear were in ruin also, and showed vi^here a spa- 
cious garden had once stood, now disordered with wild weeds, 
and desolate to the foot of the forest which clothed the moun- 
tain to the summit ; it was San Mateo, the estate and pavi- 
lion of Bolivar, and the battered venitians and walls perfo- 
rated with bullets still remaining, showed who had disfi- 
gured this beautiful place. Senora x\ntonia Bolivar had 
written to Senor Martin Duran, the major-domo of the pre- 
sident, to receive us as her friends ; it was kind, but he 
would have done so himself; the spirit of the owner per- 
vades every thing at San Mateo. We halted here till four 
a'clock. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. M8 



CHAPTER X. 

Some account of San Jtlateo — the Major-Domo an intelligent raan— our enter- 
tainment — the scene of the gallant self-immolation of Ricaute — the economy 
of the sugar mill — the sugar fine — an unceasing demand — anecdote — dinner — 
the pavilion— the barbarian Boves— historical facts— Tulmero—Maracayo— our 
arrival anticipated and quarters provided — industry proverbial here — wise 
conduct of the government to soldiers* widows and orphans — leave Maracay — ■ 
lake of Valencia—pass of La Cabrera— various historical events there — attempt 
to assassinate Paez — frustrated by a child. 

Coming upon the view of this scene, without being aware 
where we were, was certainly an augmentation of the plea- 
sure. Had we been prepared, the reputation of the owner 
would be the predominating impression on the judgment ; 
that litde area which had attracted notice, if it had been 
known to be the work of Bolivar, and that those streams 
which issued and wound round the hill, and formed a pro- 
longed and ample current at the foot of the hill just above 
the long range of the sugar-field, with its sluices prepared to 
open and supply the vegetation beneath ; all these would 
have been diminished in importance connected with a name 
so celebrated ; but, seeing it in its single character of a 
work of art and skill, very rare in this fine country, the sa- 
tisfaction was more ample ; when we were introduced to Se- 
iior Duran, and seated at his hospitable board, the gratifi- 
cation was indeed great. 

A good wall of stone, built with hme, surrounded the 
spacious area of this sugar-mill, and the entrance was on the 
road by which we must pass ; he had descried us on the 
brow of the hill above, and came to the gate, without affecta- 
tion, habited as if he was immersed in business ; a cheerful 
visaged little gentleman. I inquired the name of the place, 
and, with a smile, he signified it was St. Mateo, the planta- 
tion of the President of Colombia, and entreated us to enter. 



14l< VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

a servant having previously opened and kept the gate extend- 
ed — that the day was warm, the young lady would need re- 
freshment — and our mules would travel with better spirit 
after taking some young sugar-cane. We entered, as we in- 
tended, and had been enjoined by the President's sister, and 
were conducted into a paved hall, at one end of which was 
the dwelling of the major-domo and his family, whom he 
made us acquainted with ; fruit of the finest flavour, lemo- 
nade, and chocolate, succeeded each other as a refresco ; 
and we were invited to see the various processes of the 
sugar refining, distilling, and to visit the grounds, the ac- 
tivity going on having excited expressions of surprise and 
pleasure. 

As I had been familiar with the name of this villa, and 
the gallant self-immolation of the young patriot Ricautehad 
given it a celebrity that must endure with the republic, I 
intended to go up to the pavilion and visit the scene ; but 
was informed that the pavilion was out of repair, that it had 
still the marks of military violence and Spanish wantonness 
on its walls ; but he pointed the way and led us to his apart- 
ments contiguous to the sugar-mill, and we sat down in a 
porch truly Moorish in its structure — where a spacious ta- 
ble was soon after covered with a fine damask cloth, and 
salvers of the most delicious fruit ; light wines, and a ser- 
vice of chocolate — with hot rolls of as good a quality and as 
well made and baked as we could have had in Philadelphia — 
€ggs and butter, and sweetmeats — and a handsome case of 
liqueurs covered the board ; the spouse of Seiior Du- 
ran, with her lively children, soon presented themselves ; 
and some visitors from the neighbourhood filled the table, 
though spacious as it was — our appetites were good, and 
our host and hostess perfectly delighted, and appeared to en- 
joy our familiarity without reserve, and the pleasure which 
we could not but manifest, from an association of ideas, in 
whieh the place, the owner, the contentment, the abundance, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 145 

and the activity which pervaded this delightful villa, were 
every instant manifest. After we had been some time at 
table, the worthy host proposed to show us the establish- 
ment — we descended half a dozen stairs, which brought us 
on the floor of the mill ; an overshot wheel of excellent me- 
chanism, of about eight feet shaft, or sixteen feet diameter, 
turned a set of three massy iron vertical cylinders, of about 
two and a half feet diameter, which were supplied by two 
hands with ripe cane ; and gave full employment to a con- 
stant succession of mules, which brought their loads of cane, 
discharged them on the floor, and carried off to the distillery 
the trash (as it is called in the West Indies), or squeezed 
cane. The vat, or reservoir beneath the cylinders, though 
spacious, was kept constantly full, though two hands were 
unceasingly employed on it ; one skimming the floating fe- 
culence from the surface, which appeared to be tending to 
fermentation ; this scum was carried into the distillery, which 
was established in a building forming an angle with the 
mill on the east end, and beneath which the stream of water 
passed, supplying the uses of the distillery before it reached 
the sugar field, which, by happy contrivance, was so con- 
ducted as to irrigate the whole of the vast field of cane we 
had. seen from the summit of the hill. 

A second man, with a bucket ladle, poured into a line 
of spouts the skimmed liquor from the vats ; these spouts 
led to the apartments where the sugar was boiled, on the 
vyest angle ; contiguous to which were apartments appropri- 
ted to moulds, and the process of claying. 

On the east side of the coral, in front, toward the road, 
was a commodious house, built of stone, as was. the mill 
and offices altogether, — this was a drying house for the 
loaf sugar, a series of very large coffers — resembling, in 
their form and mode of use, the drawers of a bureau, which 
were placed beneath the eaves of the drying house. The 
loaves of sugar taken from the moulds were placed on racks 

19 



146 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

within those drawers, and, if there was an apprehension of 
of rain, those drawers, which were expose) : totht sun while 
requisite, were shoved beneath the eaves, and above the ceil- 
ing of the house within, which was the lodging apartment of 
a certain number of the labourers. 

While I was viewing this excellent contrivance, the busi- 
ness of sale was going on. Several persons rode into the yard, 
tied up their horses to a rack ; persons were employed in 
weighing the loaves of fine white lump sugar, upon which 
I found marked 22, 25, 27 pounds. The purchasers brought 
mules with sacks, suitable for the service, and placing a 
loaf or more at each end of the bag, tied the bags to the 
pannier, said little, paid their money, and moved off. Some 
horsemen purchased one or two loaves, and carried them 
across the saddle bow. 

The appearance of every thing, and every face of this 
place, spoke contentment and abundance. A domestic at- 
tached himself to me, and we rambled over the cane field — -aa 
avenue or bank, which runs along the north side of the val- 
ley, retained within a ditch the lively stream we had seen at 
the bridge, and had heard forcing its way beneath the artifi- 
cial arch. A stream that gives to the domestic economy 
a never-failing fountain, activity to the ponderous mill, sup- 
plied the distillery, and now rushed gaily along the lane of 
sugar canes, and, by well contrived demi-sluices, at con- 
venient distances descended to the inclined plane of the sugar 
field, thence conducted as experience required to any part of 
the vast field ; those channels were so well contrived, that all 
the field, or any part, could, by closing or opening small 
sluices, be irrigated at discretion. 

As the efforts of a stranger to speak the language of a 
country, are in almost every country treated with respect, 
and as if complimentary, and being desirous to make myself 
familiar, as well as to be informed, I spoke unreservedly 
with those whom I met on the plantation. I addressed my- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 147 

self to a well-looking negro, with a sleek shining skin, and ask- 
ed him whom he belonged to. He looked at me with a smile 
something between surprize and gravity, but spiritedly told 
me, there were no slaves connected with Bolivar ! The 
feeling with which it was uttered was delightful, and I apo- 
logized by assuring him of the satisfaction he had given me : 
he was at once at ease, and informed me, that though he 
might go where he pleased, he preferred to remain where he 
was, and would ever remain with the libertador Bolivar. 

Though our desayuno^ or dejeunc, had been luxurious and 
abundant, dinner had been provided while we were traversing 
the estate in different directions ; and the time elapsed so ra- 
pidly, that it was already two o'clock when we were re- 
quested to sit down. On the first entrance, the necessity of 
attending to personal civilities and conversation, rendered it 
inconvenient to bestow attention on objects around us : the 
hall in which we were now entertained was paved with 
rounded pebbles, and the ingenuity of the paver had been 
exercised, in giving, by means of different-coloured pebbles, 
an imitation of Mosaic ; the table was massive, and to ap- 
pearance as ancient as the sixteenth century ; the chairs were 
not a century more youthful, only that the backs and seats 
were of the dried cowhide of the country, though wrought 
upon with more than ordinary skill ; heavy carving on the 
backs and frames ; the table utensils of silver, as forks and 
spoons, were in the same antique style ; but there were the 
best of Claret, Madeira, Muscadel, and, what we least ex- 
pected, American porter and ale, from Philadelphia, in good 
condition : we were generously and kindly entertained. But 
it was necessary that we should part, though it was evidently 
with reluctance all round ; and our mules, as t-rdered, were 
ready to mount at three ©'clock, though we encroached half 
an hour on our regulation in respect to our worthy host. 

The ascent to the pavilion I did not atteinp; Ixif Li* ut. 
Bache ascended, and traced the position of the Spaniards by 



148 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the direction of the bullets, which continued to hold their 
places in the wall. The outhouses of this villa, during the 
diversified war of the close of 1813 and the beginning of 
1814, had served as depots for the patriot armies, who had 
bea.en fhe monster ^oz;<?5 at Victoria, and Rosette on the 
Tuy '- these sanguinary and relentless, but intrepid Spanish 
pisnisans, though defeated, had in their defeat destroyed a 
full third of the patriot troops opposed to them. Boves, 
after retiring to the plains, soon returned with reinforcements 
of natives of the country, whom he had compelled by terror 
to enrol in his ranks, and whom he retained by the same 
system of fear, coupled with the terrors of future torments, 
preycljed by the royalist monks attached to those ministers of 
massacre. Generals Marino and Mariano Montilla, by uniting 
their forces, repelled the royalists ; while Bolivar, with another 
division, which maintained the valley of Aragua, gained an- 
other victory, fought on his own estate, and in which signal 
acts of self-devotion were displayed by many of those negroes, 
and their progeny, whom he had previously emancipated, 
and whose affection and devotion led them to follow his for- 
tunes and contribute to his safety. These triumphs, ob- 
tained at a few miles apart, and unknown until success had 
removed the enemy, obliged the royal generals Calzada and 
Cevallos to retire from Valencia. 

But though the Colombian revolution has been character- 
ised by acts of valour and heroism, as much as any similar 
event in any age or country, the heroic daring of young Ri- 
caute, a native of Bogota, which was exhibited at St. Mateo, 
cannot properly be passed over by the traveller. He was in 
his eighteenth year, and distinguished for his great self-posses- 
sion, and devotion to the freedom of his country ; he took 
his station, during the attack, himself, in charge of the ma- 
gazine, with a trusty detachment. He had kept a vigilant 
watch for the enemy, who had resolved to seize upon this 
magazine : the enemy's numbers vv'cre as four to one ; Ri- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 149 

caute determined upon the course that became a hero ; hav- 
ing ordered the whole of his own party to take a private path, 
which led through the hills towards Tulmero ; intimating 
that if he survived he should follow, as he was preparing to 
frustrate the enemy. They had not marched a mile in the 
mountains, when the Spaniards determined upon an assault, 
surrounded, and entered the magazine ; Ricaute alone stood 
to receive them ; he had so disposed of the powder as to ac- 
complish his purpose most effectively, and the Spanish officer 
was about to seize him, when he put a match to the train 
he had prepared, and perished with the whole of the Spa- 
niards who had entered the place, and came to be his captors. 

The line of march from Caracas inclined very much to 
the south of west, as far as Consejo ; the course by Victo^ 
ria to San Mateo was still more westwardly and irregular ; on 
leaving San Mateo the direction was soon directly west, and 
by Tulmero, a great mercantile depot and aduana or custom- 
house under the monarchy, and containing at one period 
about 10,000 inhabitants : commerce has not wholly forsaken 
it, but the establishment of the republic has enabled every 
man to " smoke his own segars in his own way," unbur- 
dened by too much regulation. The road which leads to 
the left and to the south being the shortest by some miles, 
our mules took the shortest route, and moving off to the 
south, we avoided the inconvenience of ascending and de- 
scending steep precipices, and wound round the foot of the 
mountain, entering the neat but noiseless town of Maracay, 
in a nordi-west direction. 

This place was subject to a military commandant ; our 
hombre de provechero^ or man of service, was dispatched to 
seek quarters, but the commandant, who had also gone to 
Achaguas, by some means had heard of our coming, and 
before Vincent had returned, a subaltern officer approached 
us, and in a polite manner signified the absence of the com- 
mandant, but presented an order for our accommodation on 



150 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Senora Moreno in the Calle de Bolivar^ and he was so oblig- 
ing as to pass with us to the house„ 

The spacious spates of this casa were thrown open, and 
we rode into the patio^ or open court within the house, where 
we Were received by two or three ladies in mourning, of very 
respectable appearance and manners, who showed us every 
attention, gave us the two best apartments in the house, of 
which the windows open upon the Plaza or Great Square. 
They were particularly delighted with the Senorita Ameru 
eana del Norde, The usual routine of unloading baggage, 
patting up hammocks, preparing the chocolate, procuring 
bread (and here it was to be had of fine quality), and in short 
the travelling meal ; the provision for the mules and such 
services, all took precedence of every other business, and 
when once done, left whatever time was to be spared to con- 
versation or any other occupation. Elizabeth had brought 
with her a well- assorted apparatus for needle- work and em- 
broidery, and when we arrived early in any place, where 
there was no opportunity or object worth walking to see, 
she opened her box and went to work,, much to the admira- 
tion of the ladies, whose habits, though with exceptions, are 
yet too much Spanish m most parts of the country to derive 
any pleasure from such occupation. 

This town of Maracay, though we found it silent, and the 
streets without any idlers, but some of the drones in cas- 
socks, is celebrated for its industry ; indeed, the population 
of the east end of this valley, from the Tuy to Maracay, 
makes a strong impression ; the good order of their planta- 
tions, the exterior neatness of their habitations ; and, what was 
most striking to me, there were none of those mendicants 
which annoy by their importunity, and offend sometimes by 
their impertinence, the passing stranger, in all the cities and 
most of the towns we passed through. Here the best and 
neatest hammocks are manufactured from the cotton which 
grows on trees as large as our apple trees in all parts of Co- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 151 

lombia, in a temperature of about 70 deg. It is a perfectly 
republican town ; and their hammocks, counterpanes, and 
napkins are in demand and esteem from Cumana to Merida, 
and are sought at Bogota and Carthagena ; the inhabitants 
are also as much distinguished for their probity in dealing, 
their exemption from the stateliness and inane pride of the 
Spaniards, as for their good dispositions and industry. The 
good lady at whose house we quartered, had lost her husband 
and some other male relatives in the revolution ; and, as she 
expressed it, her towns-people never thought they contri- 
buted enough to her pleasure and comfort. The mother 
and sisters of the good Senora, were solicitous to make 
our short stay as agreeable as possible, and nosegays, and 
some choice fruit were presented by them to my daughter^ 
with a most interesting candour and desire to please. 

The government is provident in many cases of this kind ; 
those ladies are allowed an annual stipend, under an implied 
condition of affording lodging to respectable persons whom 
the government may think proper to compliment in this way, 
by which I understood, that it was thus, through some means 
unknown to us, our arrival was anticipated and lodging thus 
provided. 

We departed from Maracay at half past five on the morn- 
ing of the seventeenth of November. The whole road from 
the banks of the Tuy to this place might be travelled by a 
boy on a velocipede, and it so continued to be level until we 
reached near Valencia. About half past eight we had the 
first delightful view of the lake of Valencia, as the sailors 
would express it, on our larboard bow; the sweetness of the 
atmosphere, its serenity and tempered light, with a slight 
ripple from a breeze on the expanded lake ; the mountains 
on each side receding and ascending ; at the base gradually 
curving until near the summit, their declivity or uprightness 
conveyed the idea of that kind of parabolic line, formed by 
the sides of a large punch bowl, the lake itself did not seem 



152 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

continuous, from this point, but as if composed of several 
lakes, from the intersection of promontories, and the apparent 
continuity of land, when, in reahty, an island distinct from 
the shore filled up with the ground line in some places ; 
but which soon opened, when the position changed, as we 
advanced through the small hamlet of Tapitapa, along the 
winding beach of the lake, which, like the sea shore, was 
thickly pebbled. The coast of the lake here forms a cove 
locked in on the west, north, and east sides ; the east side 
being forest, in a gradually sloping line inclining to the lake, 
and its base forming a curve, along which the road trends 
on emerging from the immensely lofty trees that skirt the 
road from Maracay to Tapitapa, on the east ; the slope rises 
rapidly, and when two thirds of the semicircle of this cove 
are passed, it is a vast ridge, forming one of those spurs 
which characterise the whole chain from the Silla of Cara- 
cas to Barquisimeto, and of which more will be said in no- 
ticing the country round Valencia, or such other position 
as may invite elucidation. 

This lofty ridge, on the right, is extremely steep, but co- 
vered vv ith forest trees of great magnitude and elevation, and 
the base of the mountain is covered with wild shrubbery 
and brilliant foliage ; the lake on the left during the semi- 
circuit presents a most enchanting spectacle ; the verdure of 
the surrounding banks, the blue canopy over head, contend- 
ing with the bright mirror of the lake, to impress each their 
peculiar hue on the other ; the commixture of colours, and 
glassy sparkling light, resembled the corruscations of the 
Aurora Borealis^ such as poetry might make a theme of, and 
if the poetry were equal in beauty to the object, would divest 
works of imagination of a great part of their interest. 

Ambling along this pebbled strand, charmed by the va- 
riety, grandeur, and multitude of objects, the lofty ridge ab- 
ruptly terminated, and opened a more extensive view of the 
lake beyond it j but its abrupt termination, and its shaggy 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 153 

sides and summit ceased to be interesting in a moment, and 
that instant produced a train of new sensations. The open- 
ing which exposed the lake, was just so broad as to permit 
a horseman to pass, and the opposite side presented an im- 
mense cone, rivalling the mountain in altitude, but without 
verdure of any kind ; it stood erect, a scarp of naked clay, 
of which the breadth, at the base, was not one third of the 
elevation, and cast its shadow on the trembling water ; such 
is its declivity, that it would seem hazardous for a goat to 
climb it ; a mule, with all its security and firmness of foot, 
could not ; but man has found his way in confidence to the 
summit, and established not only a dwelling, but a military 
work on its apex. A plate of this position, which is called 
La Cabrera^ fronts the title page. 

This position has been frequently made memorable du- 
iring the revolution. After the fatal earthquake of 1812, 
when the country was deprived of so. many of its veterans, 
and their arms buried with them ; when 8000 stand compo- 
sed the whole armament of the republic ; and 2000 of these 
were not fit for service ; when the monks had been taught 
to preach and inculcate, that the earthquake was an indica- 
tion of Almighty vengeance against the revolutionists, and 
Monteverde, seizing upon the fanatic fears of the multitude, 
and their panic, compelled Col. Carabaiio to retire from 
San Carlos, Miranda, with only 2000 men, evacuated Valen- 
cia, and resolved to concentrate his forces at this distin- 
guished pass. Whether it be from the difficulty of access 
by the long and circuitous route on the skirt of the lake, from 
St. Joaquin to La Cabrera, every foot of which might be 
defended by a small force against a greater ; or the singular 
form of the cone, the security it afforded from its steepness 
against attack, and against shot from its elevation, it was se- 
lected with judgment, as the best position to repulse and ar- 
rest the march of Monteverde. But some men faithless to 
their country, who had traversed the mountains as smug- 

20 



154s VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

glers, communicated to the Spanish general, that there was 
a secret path by which the defile of La Cabrera could be 
avoided. In consequence Miranda was obliged to move 
upon Victoria, which he gained before the enemy. But in 
the month of June following, Monteverde determined on a 
night attack, and before day -light surprised the patriots in 
Victoria. Miranda rallied them like a gallant soldier, and 
drove the enemy before him for more than a league, when 
the troops were called in, and the fugitive Spaniards were 
thus enabled to escape. It is considered, by men of good 
judgment, that if the pursuit had been continued with the 
same spirit that the attack was begun, Monteverde must 
have taken refuge in Puerto Cabello ; but that incident with 
others led to the fall of Caracas. 

La Cabrera was again distinguished in 1816, when Bo- 
livar landed from the West Indies at Choroni and Ocumare 5 
general M'Gregor was then charged with the advanced 
guard, not amounting to more than 500 men ; by rapid 
marches from an unexpected quarter, and taking precautions 
to intercept intercourse with Valencia or Caracas, he, by a 
skilful stratagem, surprised the Spanish picket posted at 
Cabrera, and, while they were carousing at the Posada, at 
the foot of the cone, he occupied the place by scaling the 
ordinary path, and making the Spaniards prisoners ; he then 
pursued his march, and took Maracay and Victoria before 
the Spanish general Morales could arrest his progress. 

After the war of extermination had been proclaimed, the 
affairs of Colombia had become very gloomy. When the 
patriots were made prisoners, the practice was to publicly or- 
der them to be conducted to a depot ; but a private order was 
given to execute them on the way, for which a fit officer was 
always selected ; they were directed to be pierced with a 
a lance, in the first thicket they approached. Colonel Rivas, 
a friend of Bolivar, having fallen into the enemy's hands, his 
head was cut off" by one of those Spanish monsters, placed in 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 155 

a sack, and sent, after the Turkish fashion, to his insulted and 
afflicted friend. The flower of the army and the population 
were at this period undergoing a progressive extirpation ; des- 
pair had overcome mmds of a weak temperament, and others 
of lax principles no longer hesitated to talk of reconciliation 
with Spain. Antonio Jose Paez, a native of the plains that 
border on the Orinoco, had signalized himself by his match- 
less intrepidity ; many persons having retired to the plains, he 
reproached those wavering men, and concluded by declar- 
ing, that if there could be wretches so abject as to abandon 
a cause in which so much blood had been generously sacri- 
ficed to give them freedom, they must not expect counte- 
tenance to their perfidy from him, nor the opportunity to 
corrupt others by their cowardice ; that he would not com- 
promise for a miserable existence the independence he had 
fought for ; he would rally all of his countrymen whose vir- 
tues were unshaken, and taking possession oiLa Cabrera and 
the lake of Valencia, he would carry on an interminable war 
against the Spanish tyrants and all who should submit to 
subjection ; and there it would not be in the power of all 
Spain to dislodge him. 

Near this place an action, very desperate but decisive, was 
fought in 1818. The Spanish general Morillo, had been in 
the Llanos, or plains ; Bolivar formed a plan of campaign 
against him, with Paez and Cedenio as his lieutenants. Three 
successive actions were fought on the 12, 13, and 14th Fe- 
bruary of that year, and Morillo was obhged to make a 
concealed retreat with a few horse towards the valley of Ara- 
gua. But the fugitive was pursued and overtaken with a 
body of fresh troops that had been marched to his support ; 
these were attacked on the 16th, and on the 17th; in this ter- 
rible attack, the royal troops were cut to pieces at Sombrero, 
a town on a branch of the Guarico, and about fifty miles 
north of Calabozo, where Morillo escaped by crossing the 



106 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

Guarico to Ortiz on the right bank, and thence fled to Va™ 
lencia. 

The lake is computed to be forty- five miles in its 
greatest extent, from east north-east to west-south-west, of 
a very irregular form, indented with little coves and bays; 
and varying north and south from fifteen to twenty-four 
miles. The islands, which are many, are covered with 
vegetation, and some, with lofty trees, are very picturesque. 
The absence of boats, on a lake so ample, appears extraor- 
dinary. Colonel Todd, who preceded us a fortnight, obtain- 
ed a rude sort of canoe, in order to view the lake ; but the 
pleasure did not compensate the inconvenience. 

The geologists allege that the singular cone of Cabrera 
was, at one period, a continuation of the granitic promon- 
tory covered with forests, and known by the name of Puerto- 
chuelo, and that the valley was closed, until this defile was 
separated from the contiguous mountain. But there is also 
a prolongation still further towards the south ; a long range, 
partly rocky, and covered with vegetation, not so lofty as 
La Cabrera, but separated by a larger defile on the south side. 
As an object of great curiosity, it is here noticed ; the conjec- 
tures concerning its primitive form do not carry conviction 
to the understanding. • Certainly, if supplied with boats for 
communication on the lake, it would be an invulnerable po- 
sition under such an officer as Paez. 

The constant pursuit, and the severity of those battles, 
day after day, with scarce time for rest or food, obliged Bo- 
livar to suspend further pursuit ; to call in subsistence, and 
refresh his troops. But Paez, meanwhile, was detached 
to repossess St. Fernando de Apure. As soon as the march 
of Paez was known in Valencia, Morillo renewed his opera- 
tions with the troops in Valencia, and all the wrecks of his 
force that had escaped from the plains marched eastward. 
Bolivar, with not fifteen hundred cavalry, and less than half 
the number of infantry, and part of these, as well as all the ca- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 167 

valry, armed with lances only, had cantoned his troops, with 
his advance, in the villages of Guacara, and St. Joaquin — 
some fresh troops occupied the pass of La Cabrera^ and 
his main force was at Maracay, La Puerta, and Vittoria. 
MoriJlo lost no time, aware that every hour would augment 
Bolivar's strength ; that Cedefio and Paez, who were absent, 
might be ordered to rejoin the Libertador. The pickets, 
at Guaycara, were ordered to retire deliberately upon St, 
Joaquin, and to defend this pass, and, if necessary, to retire 
and make a stand at Cabrera. From the 13th to the 17tb 
of March, was an unintermitting course of actions ; I passed 
over the scene of these conflicts, with a full recollection of 
these historical events, as I had before known them through 
authentic channels. It was evident that the warfare here 
must have been a war of detachments, or guerillas, as the 
nature of the ground did not admit of the combat of troops 
with an extended front, but was admirably adapted for de- 
fensive war and ambuscade. 

In those conflicts on the plains, Morillo received a thrust 
of a lance which pinned his body to the ground, and it was 
believed that he had perished, as the soldier who had strick- 
en the blow related the fact, and had left his lance in the 
body of the royal chief. Though the wound was not mor- 
tal, it compelled Morillo to devolve the command on Gene- 
ral La Torre, a gallant and experienced soldier, but an hon- 
ourable character. 

The renewal of the war had reached the plains, and Paez^ 
and Cedeno rejoined the Libertador. La Torre had advan- 
ced to Ortiz, on the Guarico, and there he was attacked, his 
position stormed, and the avenues between Ortiz and Va- 
lencia having been pre-occupied, the royal chief retired to the 
plains and occupied Calabozo. This campaign had such 
signal influence on the affairs of the revolution, that I have 
not hesitated to narrate such events a,s were connected with 
this memorable pass of La Cabrera. But it is not in those 



158 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

battles alone, so full of event and powerful in their conse- 
quences, that La Cabrera is remarkable. 

Morillo, as soon as he was able to take the field, marched 
to the south-west, crossed the Aguare, with an intention to 
attack Paez, who was in that quarter covering the supplies 
from the plains, and intercepting those destined for the royal 
force. 

General Paez took a position on the spacious plain of 
Coxedc, near the confluence of the small streams Aguyral 
and San Pedro with the river Coxede, a few miles south of 
San Carlos. The position commanded the highway be- 
tween the plains from which the Spanish armies drew cattle 
for their subsistence ; and its occupation much embarrassed 
the Spanish army. Morillo determined upon a movement 
through a defile on the left of the Colombian position. Paez 
had at the same time resolved upon a movement upon the 
right of Morillo, and the two operations were going on at 
the same instant : as these dispositions on both sides led 
to consequences which neither contemplated, the casual 
discovery by each, that the other was in motion, deranged 
the plans of both, and led to a conflict, in which the valour 
of the troops, and the military talents and resources of the 
commanders, must determine the issue. Perhaps no battle 
of the revolution was more desperate or sanguinary ; it was 
a series of manoeuvres, determined by the position and the 
eoup d'oeil of the commanders. The Spanish chief selected 
a position from which he could direct his operations. The 
Colombian chief gave a general order to the chiefs of his di- 
visions, to maintain a certain hne, and to move upon each of 
the enemy's columns, front and flank, at the same time ; 
Paez himself holding two columns of cavalry lancers to co- 
operate. Soublette, who was chief of the staff", in this battle 
acquired and merited great distinction. The conflict was of 
several hours' duration, and so fatal to both sides, that the 
battle ceased from loss of men and fatigue, Morillo found 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 15& 

it necessary to retire upon San Carlos, though he claimed a 
victory. Paez remained in possession of the field, and had 
to inter the enemy's dead. The great object of covering 
the source of supplies from the plains was effected, and the 
Spanish army disabled from prosecuting military operations 
for some time. The battle of Coxede is therefore considered 
as one of the most important in its consequences, as well as 
the most sanguinary of the revolution. 

As Paez was the hero of this victory, and his intrepidity 
and self-possession the principal impulses of the triumph, it- 
may not be impertinent to state in this place an anecdote, 
which, though it relates to the campaign on the plains near 
Calabozo, shews the impression entertained by the Spaniards 
of the formidable character of this chief. Many attempts 
had been made to assassinate the President, by the Spanish 
emissaries ; an attempt was made for a similar purpose on 
Paez. The nature of the country, a very warm climate, as 
well as the deficiency of resources, rendered the appearance 
or apparel in both armies very much alike : this rendered it 
sometimes difficult to discriminate between the soldiers of 
either force. A party had been selected on the plains, who 
were to use the facility which was given by these means to 
deception, and they were directed to rendezvous on the bank 
of a rivulet, at a short distance from the camp or bivouac of 
Paez. Some emissaries, who found treachery to their country 
a motive for assassination, had ascertained the tent or hut of 
the general. A slight hut had been occupied by the general's 
hammock, and some friends occupied other births; the do- 
mestics and orderlies were at hand. A small sprightly boy, 
Antonio, had a sleeping place there also ; this boy had rambled 
along the margin of the rivulet, and night coming on, he was 
alarmed by some voices very near him, and listening more at- 
tentively, heard enough to induce him, with instinctive dis- 
cretion, to return precipitately, and reveal what he had heard. 
Paez instantly changed the countersign, selected a few officers. 



f£&) VI^IT TO COLOMBIA. 

Twith orders to move circuitously, and concentrate as near as 
possible on the point designated. The picket was directed 
not to interrupt the entrance of any stranger ; and so well 
was the Spanish party entangled, that the emissaries entered 
the general's hut, and found it empty, only the moment be- 
fore they were seized. Not one of the party escaped, and 
some of them revealed the whole design ; others were de- 
tected as deserters, and they were, by a sentence of a court 
martial, disposed of as traitors and assassins. That intelli- 
gent and prudent boy, Antonio, the adopted son of General 
Paez, is the youth who is now admitted for his education 
at the United States Military Academy, West Point. 



CHAPTER XL 

l,ake of Valencia' — road along its coast— the soil invades its bed and grows 
tobacco — St. Joaquin — Guacara desolated — warm day — ^h alt to refresh — dipt 
hedge of lime trees loaded with fruit — St, Diego — aspects of the Plain and 
Lake — confidence of the people restored — figure of the Mountains — sudden 
appearance of Valencia — the Glorieta Bridge — the Patriot Officers work as 
bricklayers on this bridge — the present Commandant of Valencia, Col. Urslar, 
ao enjployed — difference in appearance from Caracas — the mihtary numerous 
■ — the Plaza Mayor or Great Square — house of Senor Penalver — hospitably 
received — quite at home — female curiosity — amiability — ideas of travelling — 
the Commandant — Gen. Paez — good breeding and amenity — evening vi- 
sit at Col. Urslar's — the tatoo beat oflF in superior style — Anecdotes of Col. 
Urslar — commands the Grenadiers of the Guard — Bolivar negociated his ex- 
change — happy military self-possession — by strategy counteracts Morales at 
Naguanagua — nature of the ground at and near Valencia — military operations 
and stratagems — evolutions and partial action — arrival of Paez^Morales de- 
feated — effects -of the battle of Naguanagua. 

Upon entering the pass of La Cabrera, the lake opened 
to the eastward to an extent not anticipated, and the 
shore on the south side, with the mountain range in its rear, 
capt with clouds which threw a shade over the distance that 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 161 

gave a strong relief to the brightness which intervened and 
extended over the lake. The detached promontories which 
now revealed themselves as islands, were exquisitely beauti- 
ful. After passing to the westernmost side, the lake appear- 
ed to extend very far to the north along the base of the ridge 
of Puertachiieloy and our road lying along the shore more 
than two miles; it was, however, comparatively a small in- 
let, perhaps three miles from the opposite side, to the cone of 
Cabrera, and narrowing as we approached its northern ex- 
tremity, round which, and along the opposite shore, the road 
still continued. At this northern extremitv of the inlet, the 
soil, from the elevations by which it was surrounded, had en- 
croached upon the ancient bed of the lake, and some fine to- 
bacco was now flourishing where the water formerly flowed. 
Our course was very variable from Tapatapa, a hamlet of 
comfortable houses which we passed on coming to the strand of 
the lake; it was first south-west, then west — west-south-west, 
-and south ; we entered the pretty village of St. Joaquin 
about nine o'clock, and did not halt till we reached Gua- 
cara a quarter before twelve. Our course had now been 
west to this place, where the day being more sultry than we 
had yet experienced, we halted. This place was in a state 
of impoverishment, and the desolation of war ; we passed 
along the principal street which we had entered, without 
perceiving any house in which the accommodation of even a 
temporary rest was eligible ; we turned the angle of the 
street to the south, through which a stream of pure water 
rambled, and finding a shop in which " cocks and hens, and 
all manner of things," were exposed for sale, we were ac- 
commodated in an angle of a room, the greater part of the 
other end being occupied by a billiard table ; some of the 
poultry and the eggs, onions, rice, sugar, and some fruit, and 
small baskets we purchased ; our chocolate was prepared 
while a hollaca of stewed pork, peeled potatoes, with spices 
and onions, was under way. The pulperia was very com- 

21 



idZ VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

municative, and indulged her curiosity in turn ; but she was 
perfectly obliging, and her charge for what she sold was so 
small, that I was apprthensive she had wronged herself; but 
she insisted on the hermosa senorita (lovely female) taking 
some fine oranges for what we had overpaid her. 

The population, if there was any at Guacara, besides a 
few old men, and some females, did not appear ; and until 
we had entered this place, there was not, on the ground we 
had passed over, any appearance of poverty, though there 
were some wrecks of the war. In the morning, about four 
miles before we reached Guacara, we saw a beautiful dipt 
hedge in front of a flourishing plantation ; it resembled in 
form those yew hedges so much in vogue half a century ago, 
or those clipt quicksets which are seen in the state of De- 
laware, but neither yew nor hawthorn could rival it for beau- 
ty ; it was composed of li?ne trees, and ih^t fruit in every stage 
of growth were abundant, pale and deep green, pale and 
saffron yellow ; a civil domestic, who was as curious in his 
admiration of us as we were of the hedge, ingenuously pluck- 
ed a couple of dozen, and handed them to us, highly gratifi- 
ed as it seemed that they were acceptable. 

After leaving Guacara, at some distance, we passed 
through a small, but not so impoverished a place, called 
Guaco, and being not very distant, we proceeded slowly 
along through St. Diego ; permitting our mules to take 
their own impulse, and at half past five crossed the plain, upon 
which the principal street of Valencia opens its rising length. 
On the line of our approach to Valencia the whole way from 
Tapatapa, we had the mountain ridge on our right, nearly 
parallel with the road, only where the limbs thrown out from 
the mountain side rendered it preferable to make a small 
circuit rather than climb its sides. The lake was constantly 
on our left, at times intercepted to the view by plantations 
in prosperity or in ruin ; many were in the latter condi- 
tion ; though we saw, in the course of our journey, that 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 163 

some had been already redeemed, and were undergoing the 
preparation for culture, or in actual production. Many- 
houses that bespoke former sumptuousness, were in the state 
in which the war left them ; contiguous to one of these unal- 
tered ruins, the ground had been handsomely fenced with 
saplings, six feet, high, and four or five inches apart, laced 
near the head and base with those natural ropes [bejuca) which 
grow in such variety and abundance in the ever-present for- 
ests. Within the fence an elegant picture of an indigo 
patch was distinctly seen through the fence, the green tops 
of the plants, just rising above the ground, forming long 
selvidges, at about six inches apart ; but this newly restored 
plantation appeared like a gap in the long line of wild vege- 
tation, which rose round it on all sides ; several roads or 
lanes led towards the lake, which was about from three to 
four miles on our left ; but in other places the scene of hus- 
bandry was pleasing, as well for the activity as the gay as- 
pect of the cultivators, who, when sufficiently contiguous, 
generally gave us a complimentary nod and smile, and some 
phrase of satisfaction which we could not distinctly under- 
stand. Confidence every where appeared, which I had not 
expected, because Morales was at that moment desolating 
and plundering the country contiguous to Maracaibo, and 
menacing Truxillo, Merida ; and Puerto Cabello, only twen- 
ty-two miles from Valencia, was still occupied by the Span- 
iards. So confident had the people become, after Morales 
had been defeated at Naguanagua, within sight of Valencia. 
The road, as we approached Valencia, was at the very 
skirt of the mountain, which threw out many limbs in a 
fantastic, and yet a sort of uniformity of projection, present- 
ing between them, nooks or recesses, in which towns or vil- 
lages constandy appeared. As we came within a short dis- 
tance of Valencia, one of those promontories thrust its pro- 
longation across the line of our march ; it was covered with 
shaggy forest trees, and its sides steep, and the extremity 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA.. 

on the plain exhibited a vast body of stupendous rocksj 
which appeared to threaten all things beneath their shadowy 
but were held together by the thick twining limbs of some 
giant sycophants, which entwined the rocks, resembling ivy 
in the manner of vegetation, but of greater magnitude ; wd 
were under the necessity of winding round this rude pro- 
montory, which was between two and three miles from the 
city, which now broke upon us, in a very impressive pic- 
ture. The line of the great ridge had receded with the 
south-west side of this savage declivity, which presented an 
arid face, furrowed by deep ravines. At the distance of four 
miles, a spacious verdant plain, which inclined on our left to 
the lake three miles distant, and to the low plain of Naguana- 
gua on our right, presented the numerous horse and foot 
paths which led to and concentred in the city, indicating a 
considerable population. 

We had crossed the plain, better than a mile, when a spa- 
cious street opened upon us, in its length sloping towards 
us ; and a lively rivulet cast out numerous rills, winding 
towards the valley on our right ; a bridge of unusual neat- 
ness crossed the rivulet, and nearly as broad as the street, of 
which it was the eastern extremity ; a spacious semicircular 
platform was constructed on each side, over the arch, with, 
benches of masonry, of excellent workmanship, and covered 
with a coat of lime plaster, wrought in great perfection. 
It was the Gloriete, the work set on foot by Morillo, but 
wrought by patriotic hands ; in the execution of this work, 
Morillo employed the officers of the Colombian army, whom 
the fortune of war had placed in his vile hands. They were 
brought from their prisons in irons, and with irons on their 
legs ; they were compelled to execute this work, under the 
charge of miscreants whose orders were any thing but hu- 
man ; in this warm climate, for the sun's rays are more ar- 
dent here than in any part of the valley of Aragua or of Cara- 
cas, they were compelled to make the mortar , carry loads of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 165 

brick and stone on their shoulders, and execute their task in 
the mid-day heat. We viewed the workmanship with pe- 
culiar gratification, not knowing its history ; but we had 
some compensation for the pain with which we heard 
its history narrated by a colonel, who was one of the 
constructors of the Gloriete, whom we had the plea- 
sure to know in Colonel Urslar. He now commanded in 
Valencia, and had but a short time before given the Spa- 
niards a signal defeat at Naguanagua, within three miles 
of Valencia on the north side : the action was witnessed 
from the streets, and even from the Gloriete^ being the last 
attempt made by the Spaniards on that city. 

We continued to ascend the sloping street, and it being 
Sunday, the appearance of our costume attracted many a 
bright eye, and particularly the rosy-cheeked member of 
our party. We also glanced at the beauties of Valencia, as 
we had heard they were more proud than the ladies of other 
cities ; they did not appear as fair as their country-women at 
Caracas, but their features w^re striking for regularity — and 
they seemed to know they had eyes—with which perhaps 
their brilliancy made them acquainted. Whether it was that 
they put on their best apparel and their best smiles and 
dimples, for the sabbath-day, it is certain they looked lively 
and interesting. 

The barracks stand on the left of the street, and the ofE- 
cers appeared to have just left parade, and gazed with as 
much apparent curiosity as the ladies — and put questions, 
such as are asked every where in such cases, but which none 
of them could yet answer. The prolongation of this street 
continues the whole length of the city, and about half-way 
its length forms the south side of the Plaza or great square. 
Our courier Vincent had already found the residence of the 
respectable patriot Fernando Peiialver, a senator of Colombia, 
which stood in the continuation of the street, which forms 
the west side of the Plaza. The church is on the east side ; 



166 YISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the north occupied by spacious dwellings, and the west side 
with some spacious houses two stories high, one of which at 
that time was military quarters for the staff, and holds a 
melancholy but signal place in the history of the revolution. 

It was half past five when we rode up to the ample gates, 
which were instantly thrown open, and we entered the neat 
portal to the patio; where we were cordially received by 
Senorita Penalver, the niece of the respectable owner, who 
conducted Elizabeth, and invited us to a spacious saloon, 
and ordered refreshments. The domestics of Colombia, in 
families like this, are diligent, obliging, and punctual ; or- 
ders do not require to be repeated, and the hospitable usages 
are so well understood, that orders are never necessary. We 
were already at ease, and treated like old acquaintances. Se- 
iior Penalver was at his plantation, about ten miles south, 
and restoring it from the dilapidation which his virtues had 
earned from Spanish vengeance ; he was a widower, and his 
niece, and a daughter of eleven, were the only inmates ; his 
nephew, Ferdinand, a noble youth of sixteen, was with his 
^ncle. 

Our mules had been carried to the coral, forage ordered, 
and, as night came on, a crowd of the pretty faces, perhaps 
some of whom we had seen on our way, thronged in, some 
of whom, in the simplicity of their hearts, with witty mirth 
enquired whether the bonita Senorita purchased the colour 
on her cheeks at the modista''s, or had it in the natural way ? 

The company for the whole evening was numerous, and 
of both sexes ; and as we were not profoundly ready and 
conversant in la lengiia Castellana, the good nature of the 
young ladies was exercised, in the desire to understand as 
well as to encourage the Sefiorita Americana to hablar. I 
have no where seen people more cheerful and innocently 
gay, or unaffectedly solicitous to render themselves agreeable 
and useful, than the ladies whom I have had the pleasure of 
knowing, in their families, in Valencia. This disposi- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 16T 

tion indeed prevails every where, and I have not seen more 
than one or two in the country, who from their demeanour 
could be suspected of affectation. 

The good Senorita took my daughter to her own cham- 
ber, and Heutenant Bache and myself had each a chamber 
assigned to us. The first night's rest, and the first morning's 
intercourse, made us as much at home as we could be where 
usages and language were not the same. It was Monday 
morning, the 19th, and the climate was sensibly warmer 
than that of Caracas ; the freshness of the air, after a balmy 
night's repose, bid us be up and doing very soon. The 
journey had been rather desultory than fatiguing or rapid, 
and might, with good horses, be accomplished in two days 
without any fatigue. But mules being the only mode by 
which baggage is transported, and in a country where there 
are neither taverns, inns, nor beds on the road, and their own 
kitchen and couch, food and raiment, are indispensable to 
those whose habits are foreign, the sober passage upon mules 
is the best adapted to the actual state of the country ; for, al- 
though the route from the foot of Cuquisias owes nothing 
to art for the construction of a road, yet the unbroken level 
of the plain of the valley of Aragua may be travelled on a 
velocipede ; there are no wheel carriages any where in the 
country, and, if there were, they could not, without some im- 
provement of the mule- path, pass even between Victoria 
and Valencia ; and, after passing the field of Carabobo, the 
path is scarcely safe on horseback, and mules alone afford con- 
fidence and security. 

I had scarcely prepared my face and apparel for the day's 
intercourse, when the military commandant. Colonel Urslar, 
was so obliging as to tender his good offices, and placed in 
my hands letters fowarded to him from Caracas, and one from 
General Paez, intimating a wish that I should remain a few 
days, and that before Thursday he intended to be in Valencia, 
His chief of staff, Colonel Newberry, repeated the same wish, 



168 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

and I assented. The general, however, had received orders 
to concentre a force at Tulmero, and to pursue a plan which 
had in view the expulsion or capture of Morales — and I had 
not the pleasure of the proposed meeting. Monday was, 
therefore, devoted to the household gods, and the inter- 
course incident to that innocent curiosity excited by the first 
visit of an American young lady to their beautiful city ; and 
we had much reason to be gratified, as well by the numbers, 
as by the courtesy and unreserved familiarity of the ladies 
whom we had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with. 
There was no ceremony or constraint, beyond the mere ci- 
vilities of reception and the complimentary adios at depar- 
ture ; and, notwithstanding some deficiency on both sides 
of our respective languages, our occasional stumbling over 
the moods and tenses, genders and persons, cordiality became 
our ready interpreters, without for an instant disconcerting 
us by that grin of inanity and indubitable folly, which 
so often, in some other countries, treats the stranger with 
vulgar and stupid sarcasm or satire, for no better reason than 
that the stranger's knowledge of the vernacular tongue is not 
equal to that which the native has no other merit in knowing, 
than that of being habituated from infancy to its use ! 

Many military gentlemen, foreigners and natives, were our 
visitors, and I had the satisfaction of acquiring the esteem, 
and its manifestation in practical good offices, of the worthy 
veteran Colonel Urslar, then in command, during the ab- 
sence of General Paez. The mid-day was devoted to the 
perusal of my letters, and answering letters to be dispatched 
by a friend, who was to proceed the next day for Caracas, 
and the evening carried us, on the invitation of his good lady, 
to Colonel Urslar's, where we found a number of agreeable 
persons of both sexes; and entered into entire sympathy with 
the worthy colonel's excellent suite of military musicians, 
and the style in which they beat off the tatoo from his quar- 
ters at nine o'clock. Indeed, I never heard a finer corps oi 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 169 

drums and fifes. We spent the evening agreeably, had the 
usual chocolate with coffee served around, cake, sweetmeats, 
and those who chose it, Hqueur or claret ; and retired, as m 
usual, about ten o'clock. 

Colonel Urslar is a native of the left bank of the Rhine, I 
think of Alsace, that country so fruitful of able and gallant 
soldiers. The wars of the French revolution, which had 
made him a soldier, left him a reduced captain, at about 
twenty -five years of age. The difficulty of the times, anci 
of forming new habits, led his mind to the new world, where 
a field for renown and fortune appeared to be prepared for 
the disbanded soldiers of Europe ; he arrived at Angostura, 
in 1817, and the discernment of Bolivar placed him in the rank 
of major. He was thenceforward engaged in all the battles and 
marches which occurred in the plains, at Coxede, Victoria, 
in the two battles on the same glorious field of CarabobOj 
at Boyacca, and was distinguished alike by the discipline 
of his regiment of grenadiers of the guard, to which his 
talents had promoted him, and by the hardiness and cheer- 
fulness with which he endured the privations of those inde-. 
scribable conflicts — for months without a shoe, and often re- 
duced to the ordinary Osnaburg shirt and trowsers, and a 
straw hat, in common with the rank and file ; rarely mount- 
ing a horse, though entitled, by his rank, to do so ; prefer- 
ring, by his example, to inspire his corps with respect and 
confidence, and to assure discipline, without the imputation 
of having spared himself in the discharge of his duties. 

In passhig the handsome bridge on our entrance to Va- 
lencia, I noticed the labours prescribed for the Colombian 
officers. The fortune of war had made Urslar a prisoner to 
Morillo, and the colonel repeatedly pointed out to me the 
positions and the parts of the structure to which he had con- 
tributed his manual labour, nearly destitute of clothing, and 
without hat or shoes, bearing a manacle and a burden, ex- 
posed to a fervid sun, but a most scorching and more in- 

22 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

sufFerable and constant vituperation and insolence from the 
Spanish soldiery ; and, sad to say, not from the humblest of 
the troops, who rather compassionated than aggravated the 
evils of their condition. 

The history of his campaigns would interest any man of 
sensibility, and would afford an example and an illustration 
of the hardships borne by the Colombian army, such as have 
probably never been endured and overcome in any part of 
this globe. On more than one occasion he was marked out 
for military execution, but rescued by some casualty, which 
he said bore an appearance of miracle ; he was, however, at 
a favourable moment seized upon by Bolivar, who appreci- 
ated his worth, exchanged, and restored to his companeros 
the grenadiers ; and a few months before we reached Valen- 
cia, he had the gratification, by skill and intrepidity, and the 
reputation he held in the estimation of the enemy, to out- 
general Morales at Naguanagua, and lead to the defeat of his 
veterans with a handful of raw troops. 

Morillo having secret communications from the city of 
Valencia, stating that the force in garrison at that city had 
been reduced by detachments to Caracas, which had been 
menaced for that purpose, resolved to march from Puerto Ca- 
bello for Valencia with 1200 men of his best troops. The 
first intimation of his approach was the appearance of his ad- 
vanced posts on the heights above Naguanagua, about four 
miles distant, and in full view of the city. 

Valencia stands upon the summit of ground not suffi- 
ciently elevated to be denominated a hill; on three parts 
of the ground, that is, the south, east, and west sides of 
the circle, the streets decline in a gradual line from the 
Great Square, which is the most elevated position. The 
ground on the west side is not embraced in this range^ 
being itself a gradual ascent from the Great Square, 
to the foot of one of those characteristic points resem- 
bling promontories, which overlooks the whole city an«^ 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 171 

plain, at a few yards from a suburb ; all the streets, 
like those of all the towns and cities we saw, intersect each 
other at right angles. The lofty mountain ridges of the 
chain presented themselves on the north ; the lake of Valen- 
cia to the south, and extending to the full capacity of naked 
vision to the south-east, the plain sloped in a gentle descent 
from the line of approach from the eastward to the lake, and 
from the same road line had a more steep descent towards 
the west and north-west, or mountain side. The whole of 
this circle was commanded by the view from the Great 
Square. 

The mountain ridge on the north presented its bleak and 
arid sides to the south, an apparent but broken semicircle 
or half moon, of about two miles diameter, from east to 
west, and three miles depth from south to north, of which 
the mountain spurs in front and rear of the city, formed 
the extremities or horns of the crescent, between which the 
city stands elevated, and the space between is occupied by 
an irregular platform or flat valley ; beyond this the vast body 
of the mountain protrudes and bellies in, within the line of 
the half moon formed by the superior ridge. This body, 
which appears like a mountain which had slidden down from 
the side of the Paramo, bears the name of Naguanagua, and 
a small village immediately at its base bears the same name. 

The common track to Puerto Cabello lies over this lower 
plain and protruding mountain, and takes the usual winding 
course of ascent common to such steep and rugged declivi- 
ties. Some huts occupy Httle platforms, on the points where 
the direction of the path is changed : and the track becomes 
indistinct from the city, as soon as the summit or ravine on 
the north-east side of this lower mountain is passed. 

The appearance of the royal force, at only four miles dis- 
tance, spread consternation in the city. There was no ex- 
pectation of such a visit, and but few troops ; but the com- 
mandant was to perform his duty ; and his first measure was 



172 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

to put the drums and bugles upon immediate service. The 
regular beats of discipline and alarm were arranged, and re- 
gularly performed, as if he had five thousand men ; while the 
whole population was called forth to sustain their homes and 
families. So long as the royal troops lingered on the sides 
of the mountain, halting at every angle to bring up strag- 
glers,— as not more than one person at a time could descend 
or ascend through the greatest part of the way,— so long 
did the tardiness of the royalists afford time to put muskets 
in the hands of men and boys, who had never before handled 
fire-arms ; such as had horses or mules he ordered to come 
forth, and formed into squadrons with lances, and taught 
them, in the very act of presenting themselves on the face of 
the city, in sight of the enemy ; he taught them to march 
by files, and face to the front or flank ; to break off at com- 
mand and form again ; and, being all expert horsemen, he 
made them move rapidly into sections of eight and twelve 
in front, and to wheel in the same order. These drills of 
the few militia and the regulars vi^ere kept incessantly in mo- 
tion, by having two parts at rest and a third at exercise, and 
in small divisions at the extremities and centre of the north 
face of the city. Both forces were thus in view of each other 
two days, distant about three miles ; the royalists, as soon as 
the night of the third day came on, descended to the small 
valley and the village in silence ; and in the morning ap- 
peared drawn up in order of battle, in the plain below. The 
patriots were immediately formed in line ; their regulars, 
amounting only to three hundred men, forming an advanced 
corps, took a conspicuous rising position on the left, or on the 
enemy's right flank ; while the militia were formed into two 
columns, a hundred yards in the rear of the right flank of the 
regulars ; the cavalry, and even the inhabitants who came 
only as spectators, were persuaded to assemble, and form a 
line on a platform oblique to the Spanish left, with an assur^ 
ance that their presence was all that would be required. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 173 

Meanwhile, couriers had been despatched to seek General 
Paez, who was on his march, to advise him of the exi- 
gency, and the presence of the enemy ; stratagem was thus 
resorted to, in order to induce the Spanish commander to 
believe that General Paez, with a strong division, and the 
grenadiers of the guard, was on his march, and hourly ex- 
pected. This display, in the face of the Spanish force, had 
all the effect that was proposed ; and other incidents, to which 
the circumstances gave rise, contributed to make a strong 
impression : for the Spaniards, instead of marching directly 
to the city, which they could have done, halted, and assumed 
a corresponding position on the base of the mountain, where 
they could not be attacked in front. Colonel Urslar had 
been previously so much indisposed, as not to be able to 
march with General Paez, as was expected, when the ge- 
neral left Valencia ; and though he put every thing in mo- 
tion, and saw all the dispositions he had directed, it was not 
supposed, by the Spanish chief, that he was at that time in 
Valencia. 

Before the dawn of the next day the patriot troops were 
ordered to descend, and appeared on the verge of the valley, 
within a mile and a half of the enemy. The citizens, who 
were only ostensible soldiers, continued posted to the right, on 
the brow of a ravine, which lay obliquely to the right of the 
patriot line, and closed the path, which extended ?iX.2irespectfid 
distance, upon the left flank of the enemy ; answering every 
purpose of an efficient force in reserve, and actually prevent- 
ing communications by emissaries ; the left of the patriot 
line was covered by the steep inaccessible declivities of the 
western horn of the natural crescent. By a predisposition it 
was contrived to be communicated in the Spanish camp, 
that Paez was expected ; and Urslar, having overcome his 
indisposition, by the exertions he had found it necessary to 
make, appeared in his usual conspicuous uniform, and on 
his well known roan charger, in the plain in front of the 



174 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

enemy. A fugitive from punishment, who had been a do- 
mestic of Urslar, had been taken into the service of MorillOj 
and was the first to make known to the Spanish chief the 
presence of Urslar, whence it was inferred that he had ar- 
rived by forced marches, and that Paez was not far off. The 
royalists had no cavalry, they would have been more per- 
nicious than useful on the ground they occupied ; but, in 
order to profit by the absence of Paez, and accomplish the 
destruction of the force drawn from the city, they sent guerilla 
parties into the valley near the village. A small squadron of 
about ninety volunteers, mounted, and with lances only, and 
and some expert Colombian marksmen, were precipitated into 
the plain, and succeeded in cutting off many of the Spanish 
cazadores, and compelling those who escaped to fall back 
upori the village. At the same moment that this evolution 
was so happily accomplished, the regulars were thrown out 
in loose order, with directions to form at a spot designated, 
and visible from their position, and be prepared there to 
move in column under the smoke of their own volley— Urs- 
iar led this column in person, formed them as proposed, 
commanded the fire, and led the charge with a musquetoon, 
which he discharged as the signal for the bayonet ; the mi- 
litia were directed by skilful subalterns who understood their 
chief, and as the main attack was directed on the right of the 
Spaniards, and their left had been disconcerted by the havoc 
committed among their light troops, either through panic or 
surprise^ or a persuasion that the patriot force was more than 
superior in numbers, and that the troops under Paez were al- 
ready present, they fell back ; the prompt and compact move- 
ment of the centre was equally successful. The brunt of the 
conflict, however, was on the right, which Morales himself 
commenced — the Spaniards were once rallied, and formed to 
attack the gallant battalion under Urslar, who had already 
formed his column on a natural Jeftee projecting from the 
mountain ; this position had the advantage of fire, and was 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 175 

adapted to fatigue the enemy, if he should attempt to ascend ; 
but an accidental approach of the squadron of cavalry from 
the left, placed the Spanish right in such a position as to 
enable the cavalry, by an easy evolution, to charge their left 
flank ; and this they were ordered to execute, while the in- 
fantry, passing from the jettee^ attacked the right of Mora- 
les' line — who did not wait for the close encounter, but re- 
tired in good order up the declivity beyond the village, where 
they were suffered to remain unmolested in consequence of 
the closing of the day. The citizens, who had rendered such 
good service by their bare appearance, were now ordered to 
return to their repose ; and a courier announced that Paez 
would be in the field early in the morning. He arrived at 
midnight; his troops had bivouaced on the plain, seven 
miles from the city, where they were furnished, by the ac- 
tivity of the citizens, with every comfort that they required. 
Before dawn the patriots were in motion, and a select corps 
had scaled the heights and taken a position, unseen, in the 
rear of the Spaniards, separated by a deep and steep ravine. 
But the attack was made consentaneously on the village 
and on the heights upon the enemy's rear ; the resistance 
was, as Urslar nobly acknowledged, unquestionably daring 
and valorous. The patriots, either from the difficulty of the 
ascent, or from design, retired by the west of the village, and 
there formed ; the Spaniards, elated by this mistaken ap- 
pearance of discomfiture, again moved down to the plain 
in good order ; but they had scarcely passed the west side 
of the village, when Paez, who had posted his lancers on the 
east, charged upon their left flank and rear at the same in- 
stant, and the struggle was short but sanguinary : the battle of 
Naguanagua became a victory which merits admiration ; two 
hundred of the Spanish troops were made prisoners with 
their arms; three hundred remained on the field dead or 
wounded ; and much ammunition was taken ; Morales re- 
tired to tlie Sierra with the remains of his force, and pro- 



176 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ceeded with celerity to Puerto Cabello, about twenty mileSj 
by the road of La Trinicera. The defeat was signal in every 
respect ; the Spanish force never after appeared in that quar- 
ter. Valencia had suffered preeminently by the war, and 
the brutality of successive commanders ; the recollection of 
the butcheries and perfidies this city had suffered, under 
every chief, from Monteverde and Morillo, to Boves and 
Morales, rendered this victory a subject of just and general 
congratulation. The valour and judgment which had, with 
a small handful of regulars, not three hundred in number, 
directed by a man of experience and intrepidity, maintained 
the position, baffled a veteran, and held him in check with so 
much skill and success, were justly appreciated. Urslar, as 
he merited, had the thanks of the general, and possessed, as 
he merited, the esteem and love of all classes. We found 
him in possession of these most grateful of distinctions and 
honours, as high in the public estimation as in the devotion 
of his gallant grenadiers, whom he had so often led to vic- 
tory. He had a short time before our arrival married a lady 
who appreciated his worth. 



177 



CHAPTER XII. 

Grenadiers of the Colombian Guard — compared with other troops — resem- 
blance of Bengal sepahis — general ideas of the military of Colombia — foreign 
troops cannot act in Colombia — nor they in a cold climate. — Privations of the 
war — the roads — useful precautions to travellers. — Our party augmented by a 
Sergeant of Grenadiers as a guide — character — anticipations of roads — delay 
at Valencia — cause. — Dr. Murphy — Seiior Penalver. — Horrible treachery and 
massacre by Boves — Dr. Pena evades assassination. 

The grenadiers of the guard, with a band of wind in- 
struments, and a corps de tambour, equal to any I had ever 
heard, seduced me to the parade, where I had the gratifica- 
tion of seeing military movements and discipline to my taste. 
This corps is acknowledged to be the best in the service, 
and was as much distinguished for its valour in the field as 
its character in quarters, and generous esprit du corps* On 
parade, and in motion, they presented to my eye a very strik- 
ing resemblance of some corps of Patau sepahis of the 
Bengal army. The greater number about five feet ten inch- 
es in height, some about six feet, none, apparently, below 
five feet eight ; the prevailing complexion, a weather-beaten 
fair or brunette, with some bloom ; about two of ten, brown 
or darker shades ; and one or two in a company with crisp- 
ed hair ; these appeared to be selected on account of sta- 
ture and robustness. In no part of the world are the people, 
generally, more athletic, muscular, and fine formed, than in 
Colombia ; the grenadiers appeared as if picked for models ; 
in fact they were a selected corps. The hair lank, black, and 
cropped, features generally handsome, some, particularly the 
pioneers, of hard features ; their aspects cheerful ; and none 
seemed to be abov5 twenty-five, nor under eighteen years. 
These were my first impressions : there may have been some 

23 



178 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

younger men, and even some as old as thirty"; but a very large 
portion of the Colombian troops, in all parts, seem to be 
under twenty years of age. The grenadiers were, there- 
fore, the more remarkable and imposing, but I never saw 
a like number of men in finer health, nor so uniformly har- 
dy and athletic. 

The select regiments of Patans, Ouriahs, and Rohillas, of 
Hindustan, are perhaps taller, but with rare exceptions, and 
not so round or full, though of equally handsome visages, and 
equally susceptible of the highest discipline ; but they could 
not sustain the marches and privations which a Colombian 
army undergo with alacrity, and without a murmur. The 
grenadiers would have furnished excellent models for an 
Apollo, or a Perseus. Their perceptible characteristics, self- 
satisfaction and energy. This corps too had their light uni- 
forms well preserved, and it was the only corps I had the 
opportunity of seeing who were uniformly well shod. Their 
training was a modification of the Prussian and French sys- 
tems, and their movements in elastic triple time, which gave 
an ease and grace to their motions, and prepared the habit for 
an increased celerity of movement. Their arms and accou- 
trements were in good order. The inverted conical leather 
corded cap, with a quitasol, or shade over the eyes, a tri- co- 
loured cockade and a small tuft, composed the head-dress, 
in ordinary ; but, on extraordinary occasions, they were pro- 
vided with the lofty mitre-shaped bear-skin caps, with large 
tassels, and a platted cord, such as were worn by the French 
grenadiers, having a gilt grenade in front, as well as on their 
coat collars, and the skirt flicing. They marched in perfect 
time, and wheeled with precision on the shortest lines. 

Of their faculties for war, the state of their discipline and 
the victories in which they had participated, at Coxede, Ca- 
rabobo, Boyacca, and in numerous minor conflicts, but, above 
all, the constancy and fidelity they had displayed in circum- 
stances most apj>aHing and disastrous, had given them a very 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 179 

high reputation; indeed, if their conduct be contrasted with 
the condition of the population from which they were drawn, 
at the commencement of the revolution, their discipline and 
character altogether present a most extraordinary example, 
and the evidence of what may be done by a mild system, 
and the example and familiar intercourse of officers with 
their comrades : for this is the Colombian system ; neither 
blows nor stripes are permitted ; they could never succeed 
there ; they never succeed any where to make soldiers that 
can be relied on. 

The facility with which such men were converted into 
victors and veterans, must be a grateful subject of reflection 
to the friends of freedom : men who, in 1810, trembled at 
the flash of a thimble-full of gunpowder, and contemplated 
a firelock as a demon, became so indifferent to the fire of 
batde, that they have frequently attacked the artillerists at the 
muzzle of their guns, with the bayonet ; often by charges 
of cavalry, carrying no weapon but the lance. It may be 
pertinent to remark, here, in relation to some notions which 
prevail as to the horrible consequences of a whole people 
being rendered so susceptible of military enterprise ; the 
truth is, that the troops of Europe are incompetent to make 
any durable impression in those countries — within forty- 
miles of the ocean they must perish of the climate — beyond 
that distance, of hunger ; they must retreat or starve. On 
the other hand, the Colombian troops could not sustain the 
rigors of a cold climate. They are happily adapted to the 
defence of their own country, and invincible to all the world, 
when conducted as they have hitherto been. Indeed the 
whole population, and both sexes, have undergone a change 
of character, produced by the duration and savage character 
of the war, as carried on by the Spaniards. The frequency 
of peril, has taught them caution as well as courage ; they 
do not now apprehend danger when there is none, and are 
prepared against it when it happens. 



180 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

In reference to the disinterestedness and constancy of the 
native troops during the revolution ;• — the vicissitudes of mili= 
tary marches, and the scantiness of subsistence, were not the 
only traits of fortitude and fidelity — none of the armies of Co- 
lombia had magazines for subsistence, nor hospitals, nor even 
pay or clothing ; a whole army has been without a single shoe, 
or a second shirt. The climate rendered the want of tents not 
so great an inconvenience, but clothing of some kind was of 
absolute necessity — ^and that necessity could not be supplied 
for many months together. Occasionally one or two reals 
a week were issued, some weeks not even a real ; an occa- 
sional arrival, from the United States, brought a few suits 
of clothing ; but the credit of the government was low, and 
the artifices of the Spanish agents in the United States, who, 
by what means is not certain, had secured many presses in 
the United States, produced discredit, by pouring forth 
calumny on the revolution and its leaders, and represent- 
ing the cause as not only desperate, but despicable. These 
odious doings cost many lives ; and interfered materially-, 
not only with the supplies, that would otherwise been have 
furnished, but on the government of the United States. 
The wants and sufferings of these people were proportion- 
ably aggravated, and in contemplating their constancyj 
and their triumphs, admiration is augmented, as the par- 
ticular facts are discovered. The troops, nevertheless, did 
sometimes shew symptoms of discontent and disappoint- 
ment ; but there is no instance of their disobedience to or- 
ders, or refusal to meet an enemy ; even their miseries were 
forgotten in the presence of an enemy, whose barbarity was 
perhaps a very powerful spring of action, and cause of uni- 
on among the native troops. Danger seems never to have 
been apprehended, when they had officers who were brave 
and kind to them, and whose talents were known, and cour- 
rage exemplary ; with these the roar of artillery, and the re- 
verberations of the Andes, made " cheerful music." They 
sometimes developed faculties adapted to particular service 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 181 

in an extraordinary manner. The riflemen of the valley of 
the Cauca, I have been informed, were equal in coolness 
and precision to our own ; and their cavalry, where the 
country was adapted to their operations, had no superiors — 
they were as expert horsemen as the Arabs or Persians, and 
of more resolute courage than the Tartars; for daring and 
dexterity, in the use of the lance, and the management of the 
horse, perhaps they have no equals. 

Those who have not traversed the Andes considerably, 
can have no adequate conception of the marches and servi- 
ces of the armies ; nor of the unfitness of European troops, 
to strive against them. It was the boast of the soldiers of 
the revolution of North America, that the path, over which 
they marched, was frequently stained by the blood of their 
shoeless feet ; and it was too true. But in Colombia there 
was neither a shoe nor a road ?ny where, the prepared work 
of art ; the best, which occtsionally offered, was a track 
beaten by the feet of mules, on a level, or on a yielding 
mould ; and the range of m' litary action, was not always, as 
at Carabobo and Boyacca, on a highway ; but on the sides 
or summits of rocky steeps and precipices, where wheel 
carriages were never seen, and could not move. The coun- 
try east of St. Carlos is comparatively level ground ; after 
passing the battle ground of Carabobo, it is a broken and 
ever varying wild, unless where the population is somewhat 
numerous ; cultivation and the pasturage present some scenes 
rescued partially from natural rudeness. All the rivers rise 
in these vast mountains, and the routes of armies, as well as 
travellers, are directed to the loftiest ridges, because it is on- 
ly by that course the crossing of the torrents is to be avoid- 
ed. I have been placed on many occasions in positions, 
in whichj if I had not been so fortunate as to have obtained 
an experienced and expert guide, I should have gone astray, 
or been entangled in ravines, and precipices, from which ex- 
trication would seem hopeless. 



182 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

There are certain peculiarities in the track that must of 
necessity be travelled, which, though stated here in advance 
of the experience by which they became known, may serve 
to show the reader what difficulties the traveller, as well as 
the soldier, had to overcome. The route generally through 
the populous countries is traced by the mules, on soils which 
receive the impression of their feet ; in thickly wooded re- 
gions, or in the savannas, where the rapidity and rankness of 
vegetation give a velvet sward that bends elastic to the tread, 
or grass so tall as to rise above the rider's head, the track is 
seldom visible below. In such cases the guide is like the 
pilot on a coast, he looks out for some headland ; and the 
waving lines and fantastic forms of the summits of the Cor- 
dillera, show peaks, which, like land-marks seen on the 
ocean, tell the bearing or direction of the route. 

The experience of the commandant at Valencia, and an 
examination of our servants, had pointed out the necessity 
of our having some better guide than either of them. A 
Serjeant of the grenadiers, who had been somewhat disabled 
in the feet,- was attached to him as an orderly, and having 
consulted the serjeant, he was proposed to us as a guide ; he 
had travelled the route five times before, and we gladly ac- 
cepted the favour, and with gratefulness, though far short of 
the thanks we afterwards found to be justly due. 

Our guide had been attached to the commandant since 
1817, and he wore the yellow ribbon and medal of Carabobo 
at his button-hole ; he was a vigilant and faithful soldier ; 
as we proceed he will be better known ; it is merely enough 
to say here, that he was an Englishman of Suffolk, and had 
been a seaman at the battle of the Nile ; he had the dry humour 
of an Irishman of the same class ; and the same never-ceas- 
ing flow of animal spirits, vivacity, and inclination to mirth : 
upon occasions, such as the apparent inextricability of a savan- 
na, forest, dry river bed, ravine, or bleak paramo, I was accus^ 
tomed to provoke his drollery for pastime, and as it was the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 183 

only compensation he was allowed to receive, I endeavoured 
to make up in confidence and kindness for the good which 
he most cheerfully and unceasingly rendered to the very last 
moment of separation. 

I was accustomed to ask of him : " Serjeant, have we not 
lost the road?" " What road?" asked the serjeant; " there 
is no longer any king's highway in this country ; they have 
all become republicans." " But repubHcans must travel." 
" Well then, look at that peak to the south-west." " What, 
the highest peak of all ?" *' Ay, colonel, the very highest of 
all." " I suppose our route lies near that?" " Near it, colo- 
nel ! yes, faith, over the very tip-top of it." "This is not the 
first time that I observed our road lay over the highest 
places." " Faith, colonel, you may take it as a rule, that, if 
any mountain higher than another lies in your way, your road 
lies over that; it was the way with the Indians, and the way 
with the Spaniards after them ; and it is, as you see, the way 
still." " I suppose, after the war is closed, there will be bet- 
ter roads, and over shorter spaces?" " That, colonel, is 
none of my business ; I belong to the grenadiers of Colom- 
bia, and when they give us our arrears of pay and allowance 
of land, I may be able to talk about that." 

According to the theory of our military conductor, the 
policy of impassable roads, or of no roads, belonged to the 
aborigines ; being in constant conflict, they had for purposes 
of defence, as well as offence, selected the most elevated and 
difficult paths and passes, from which they could discover 
an approaching enemy, or descend upon him by surprize, 
or annoy an assailing force, by rolling ponderous masses of 
rock down the the line of approach ; a stratagem repeatedly 
practised, with terrible success, against the Spaniards, du- 
ring the revolution. The policy of the Spaniards, he said, 
had adopted the plan, to prevent communication between 
adjacent provinces. The theory was plausible ; indeed the 
only communication permitted between Bogota and Caracas 



184? VISIT TO' COLOMBIA. 

was that of the correo or postman, which took forty days to 
perform ; stations were assigned, at which the runners were 
changed, and as the package was often light enough to be 
carried by a pigeon, the labour was not very great, nor the 
speed expedient. Private individuals obtained permission to 
travel, with difficulty. 

I have introduced these particulars here, because they 
serve the double purpose of illustrating the marches of ar- 
mies, and preparing the traveller for the roads he is to sur- 
mount. 

Our stay ^t Valencia had been prolonged, from respect to 
General Paez — but he had been ordered on service in a 
different direction ; an accident, however, made my stay 
eleven days. The commandant, in his desire to afford 
me and my companions every gratification, intimated that 
the lake could be seen to advantage from the terraced roof 
of an adjacent house, which stood on the corner of the Pla- 
za, now occupied as a barrack. On the twentieth, we pre- 
pared ourselves with our glasses, and ascended, and here it 
was that I found a terraced roof, such as are found on all well 
constructed houses in India. The lake lay between three and 
four miles to the south-east of us, and the prospect was cer- 
tainly grand ; the Serrahia of Ortiz^ which runs in an apparent 
line from east to west, on the south side of the lake, appear- 
ed like a changeable silk scarf in the distance, a sort of van- 
ishing and returning mirage ; while the lake, changing from 
the aspect of a broad sparkling sea of quicksilver, appeared 
diminished into a narrow gulph, of which the extremity was 
imperceptible. The mountain ridge, which separates the 
valley from the sea, when we looked along the lake, seemed 
to present shadows of an ochreous hue, interspersed with 
dusky green, and from which a scintillating transparent va- 
pour appeared to rise, which seemed to give substance to 
thfc atmosphere. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 185 

After gratifying our curiosity, we were about to descend. 
The stairs (unfortunately for the occasion) were not the 
Gothic double flight of ponderous brick, but of wood, with 
four landings. Some of these landings had been stript for 
fuel, by the cocineros of the barrack, and more apprehensive 
for Elizabeth, than careful of myself, I for an instant for- 
got that the landings were stript, until I found myself seat- 
ed on the ground floor beneath the stair- case, through which 
I was carried by my own weight ; my first impression was 
to halloo — " all's well," though I found myself not quite 
well enough to stand upright, and crawled on all fours from 
my place of deposit. I was a little stunned, and so much 
bruised, as not to be able to mount my mule before the 
twenty-eighth. The accident was more than compensated, 
by the acquaintances it had procured me, and the kindness 
it produced ; it procured me the intimacy of Seiior Pefial- 
ver, who, hearing of my arrival, had returned the very eve- 
ning this accident occurred. 

The physician of the division of the army stationed at Va- 
lencia, on hearing of this accident, called upon me of his own 
kindness, and I had the benefit of his skill, and the gratifica- 
tion of his intercourse. Dr. Wm. Murphy is a native of Sligo, 
in Ireland ; he was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, 
studied medicine, and took his degree there. As a catholic, 
and a man of talents, his own country was the last in which 
he could expect to prosper, or to live in quiet without base- 
ness, and Colombia presented to him a field where his qua- 
lifications and virtues promised to place him on equal terms 
with men of virtue and worth. A townsman, youthful com- 
panion, and college friend. Dr. French Mullery, similarly 
circumstanced, associated with him in the emigration, and 
both had risen to the rank of surgeon-major in the military 
establishment. I met Dr. Mullery afterwards at Barquisime- 
to. Both these gentlemen were held in the highest estima- 

24 



186 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

tion, as well for their professional merits, as the exemplary 
integrity of their social character. If words could convey 
sufficiently the sentiments with which these worthy Hiberni- 
ans inspired me, I should not be so sparing of my expres- 
sions of esteem and gratitude for their generous and disinter- 
ested attentions to me and to my family party, as Dr. Mul- 
lery significantly described us. 

Obliged to remain four days in a reclined position, I had 
ample opportunities from the kindness of Seiior Penalver to 
converse on every kind of subject — the revolution ; the bar- 
barity of the Spanish chiefs ; the ruinous effects on families ; 
the early distractions and parties arising out of unsettled 
views ; the inexperience of free government ; the force of lo- 
cal predilections ; personal ambition ; jealousy of men with 
better talents ; the remains of Spanish attachments, which 
nothing could have completely eradicated but that very bru- 
tality and ferociousness, which characterized every governor 
and officer of Spain, from the commencement to that very 
hour when Morales was spreading desolation, and accumu- 
lating by plunder a fortune, to be transferred to Europe, 
where he meant to retire as soon as it amounted to what he 
deemed competent to his future designs. The characters of 
men of eminence, living and dead, were happily and perspi- 
cuously reviewed, and the proud prospects which the revolu- 
tion presented for posterity, but which had cost so much 
misery and ruin to the generation that had accomplished it. 

I learned that he was the only survivor of seven brothers; 
the rest had perished in war or by assassination ; one niece, and 
one nephew of sixteen, and a daughter of eleven, were all who 
remained of a numerous family ; their estates had been de- 
solated ; he had been in voluntary exile from his home, and 
his niece had suffered all the hardships incident to a flight by 
sea, in which she had visited the West India islands, return- 
ed by the Orinoco, and thence by land to her native home; 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 187 

and who, in doing the honours of his house, left us nothing 
to wish but that it were possible we should never be sepa- 
rated. 

In the various interesting transactions related while I was 
thus delayed, was a horrible act of deliberate perfidy and as- 
sassination by a Spanish general : the campaign of 1814 was 
most calamitous to the republic ; the wants of the army could 
be supplied only by its separation into divisions, to equalize 
subsistence on different parts of the republic ; the Spaniards 
had distributed their forces under a number of partizan chiefs; 
and it was deemed by the republican chiefs the safest policy 
to meet them in that mode of operation which they had pre- 
ferred, a guerilla war. But the result to the patriots was 
disastrous : in the plains, in Coro, and other places, they suf- 
fered defeat. The ferocious Boves entered Caracas in 1814, 
and the casemates of Laguayra became the prison and the 
grave of many generous men. The siege of Puerto Cabello 
was obliged to be raised. Valencia yet held out with suc- 
cess, though not without disaster ; every thing after the first 
battle of Carabobo, 28th May, 1814, appeared to reverse 
their good fortune, and it became necessary for Valencia to 
capitulate upon a proposition very plausibly made by 
Boves. 

The utter disregard of treaties and promises which had 
uniformly characterised the Spanish commanders, led to the 
insertion of an article in the capitulation, which the Valen- 
cians hoped to find more solemn and binding when sancti- 
fied by their most sacred solemnity. It was agreed that the 
capitulation should be ratified at high mass to be celebrated 
in the from of both armies, where, in the presence of the 
sacred emblem of the divinity, each should swear upon the 
host to observe the conditions faithfully. The solemnity and 
the oath having taken place, the city was surrendered to the 
royal authority. 



18S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The calm which now succeeded appeared auspicious : a 
disposition began to be manifested which preferred submis- 
sion to the further prosecution of war. Alas ! this calm was 
but the precursor of a sad catastrophe. The custom of cele- 
brating important events by festivity and feasting pervades 
Spanish America. The city was tranquil, and the remem- 
brance of past evils had lost some of their acuteness. To 
give testimony of his satisfaction at this quiet state of things, 
Boves signified that he would give a grand entertainment. 
Notifications were circulated, and all the principal persons 
of both sexes were invited to a splendid supper and ball : it 
was even hinted that absence would be construed into dis- 
loyalty ; the effect was such as was intended. 

Upon festive occasions, where the company is numerous, 
it is customary with private families to borrow from each 
other their plate and other conveniencies. On this occasion 
it could not be supposed that the Spanish general was pro- 
vided with plate for the table to supply such a concourse. 
Every family was eager to contribute whatever remained un- 
plundered ; and they were the more eager, as it seemed to 
promise more favour. There were few articles of plate re- 
maining in any private house after this contribution ; - and 
the feast was accordingly sumptuous. The day was spent 
in consolements and condolements, regrets for past afflictions 
and compliments that they were terminated. The evening 
seemed too long, and night too hasty, to the dancers. The 
music already enlivened the halls, and the streets exhibited 
a social holiday. In one saloon the youth of both sexes 
" tripped on light fantastic toe," in another the flask circu- 
lated with unsuspecting freedom. The females were nearly 
all left to dance alone, such was the attraction of momentary 
conviviality — a few only refrained from the indulgence — in 
the midst of this double career of enjoyment, the folding 
doors are suddenly thrown open ; soldiers occupy them with 
their sabres and bayonets, and a general massacre of the men 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. iB9 

instantly takes place, amidst the shrieks and cries of females 
in the adjacent apartments — wives, mothers, daughters for- 
get their own safety and rush into the midst of the mas- 
sacre, vainly seeking husbands, fathers, sons, and brothers — ■ 
whom they find bathed in their own blood, and in the ago- 
nies of death. 

It would be fruitless to offer any commentary on such 
an atrocious deed. It will occur to every one that the mas- 
sacre reduced the plunder of the plate borrowed for the fes- 
tivity to a petty outrage. Some subaltern officers, who were 
not among the guests, had the honest imprudence to avow 
their execration of the deed — they were not long concealed 
from the tyrant Boves, and were unceremoniously executed, 
along with some soldiers, who had uttered similar indigna- 
tion, on the very spot v^•here the solemn mass had been per- 
formed in ratification of the capitulation. 

Among the few who were so fortunate as to escape the 
general assassination, I had the satisfaction of being intimate 
with one at Bogota. Senor Miguel Pefia, one of the judges 
of the Supreme Court at Bogota. This gentleman was 
among the guests invited ; whether from a distaste of ca- 
rousal, or some movements which he happened to notice, 
which induced him to caution, he had retired to the lower 
apartments, and contrived to obtain the habit of a monk, in 
which he found no interruption; and intuitively made his 
way to an adjacent mountain, and to a village on the oppo- 
site side, where he awaited to ascertain the truth or error of 
his apprehensions, which, when he found realized, he lost no 
time in retiring out of the range of apprehension. He con- 
firmed the story to me at Bogota. 

The narrative here given was made from memory, after a 
casual relation by a contemporary resident ; some incidents 
have escaped my memory of an aggravating kind ; but I 
prefer stating substantially what I heard to risking an imper- 
fect or mistaken point in a transaction sufficiently detestable 
and abhorrent^ 



im 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Aguas Callientes — prepare for marching — charges for mule hire — our party 
augmented — depart the twenty-eighth — charming country — vast range un- 
cultivated — description of our party — proper to travel armed — it is the cus- 
tom — aspects of the country — pi'omontories issuing into the plain-^divergen- 
cy of the route — towns on the line of march — the field of Carabobo — conduct of 
Morales — quarrel of the Spanish chiefs — La Torre retires — Morales' conduct 
— manly declaration of Captain Spence — towns on the road — warm climate — 
travel by night — Palmas — river Portugueza — accommodations at Palmas — 
good-natured fat acalde— some particulars of the customs — style of building — 
recollections and comparisons — smoking — the custom abating. 

Before the accident which detained me at Valencia, I 
had contemplated an excursion to the Aguas Callientes^ or the 
warm springs, in the neighbourhood of Puerto Cabello, which 
is about twenty-two miles from the city ; but it would have 
been impracticable, the Spaniards holding Puerto Cabello 
still, and a picket from Valencia being posted at the princi- 
pal pass in the mountains, with absolute orders not to permit 
any person to go or come between the two places. Lieut. 
Bache, however, obtained a passport, with a view only to 
visit the springs, his curiosity being excited by the descrip- 
tion of Humboldt; but the picket would not permit him 
to pass ; and he returned, though he was compensated by 
viewing the ground of the battle at Naguanagua, and the 
steepness of the Cordillera, over which the route to Puerto 
Cabello lies. 

Having so far recovered, as to be able, with some altera- 
tions in the seat of my saddle, to mount my mule, it be- 
came necessary to provide mules for the baggage and ser- 
vants. The charge, for a single mule, from Caracas to Va- 
lencia, about 107 miles, was five dollars ; the demand made 
for nearly the like distance to Truxillo was ten dollars each 
mule ; at first sight, this seemed like extortion, but Colo- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 191 

nel Gomez, formerly an aid of President Bolivar, satisfied 
us that the nature of the country made the difference justifi- 
able. We had experienced, from every officer of the Co- 
lombian service, the kindest attentions, and Colonel Gomez 
took upon himself to provide an ariero who would accom- 
pany us : the master muleteer was somewhat better than his 
man, though he played us some tricks, but none that were 
so important as to require a report to the Colonel — and we 
found the route, as the Colonel described, such as war- 
ranted double the demand for mules of that from Caracas 
to Valencia. 

Our good friend, the commandant of Valencia, actuated 
by his good wishes and his experience, as noticed in the 
preceding chapter, had discovered, from our servants, Vin- 
cent and Pedro, that although they both professed to be so 
well acquainted with the country, as to undertake to be our 
guides, neither of them had ever been farther south or west 
than Truxillo ; and proffered us his orderly sergeant, who 
had five times passed the whole route, to accompany us. 
The sergeant, of whom I took notice before, whose pas- 
sion was rambling, and who had become so much natural- 
ized to the climate, food, and people of the Sierra, was 
so well knov/n, every where on the road, that this little jaunt, 
of 1300 miles, was as welcome to him as a party of plea- 
sure, and the whole addition to our expence was the hire 
of another mule ; the commandant making it a condition 
that he should receive nothing — and in truth, it was not ne- 
cessary as to the sergeant, for he considered the permission 
to go with us as a favour to him. This addition to our 
cavalcade had many very useful effects ; he knew every bo- 
dy, every where ; he knew where to procure what wt want- 
ed, and always on cheap terms ; and without him, it is mo- 
rally certain, we should not have been able to find our way 
in three months, nor to manage the knavish dispositions of 
our two hired asistientes* A sergeant or a corporal is as 



19^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

proud of his rank, and tenacious of his command, as a g€» 
neral ; accordingly I placed him in command of the rest of 
the suite, and as when mules are hired, a muleteer accom- 
panies every three or four mules, to provide their forage, load 
and unload, and take charge on their return, we had now 
the arierOf who rode his own mule, and his servant mu- 
leteer, who walked, attached to our corpSt so that the ser- 
geant was in his element, and conducted things as if he was 
on military service. When mules are hired, the subsistence 
of mules and attendants is comprehended in the hire. 

We had been eleven days at Valencia, and had obtained 
the esteem and good will of many estimable persons of both 
sexes, of whom we took leave on the 27th November, par- 
ticularly the gallant commandant and several officers of the 
grenadiers, and our amiable friend. Dr. Murphy. Our mules 
being punctual, (a rare case,) we were mounted at the dawn 
of the 28th, and found, as customary, a party of our friends 
already prepared to escort us out of town. The venerable 
and worthy Ferdinand Perialver was the last who left us, at 
the distance of nearly ten miles, leaving such impressions of 
his liberal and cultivated mind, and practical virtues and prin- 
ciples, as can only cease to be felt along with the cessation 
of every faculty. 

It was not until the converse with our friends had ceased, 
and we were at ease to look around us, that I could bestow 
any attention on the beautiful plain and country through 
which we were passing, nor the number of our cara- 
van. Our sergeant led the van. Lieutenant Bache and his 
sister followed, and I came next ; then the three mules with 
baggage, and the spare mule, the ariero and his man, and 
last of all our two domestics — eleven mules, and six in our 
party , besides the muleteers. Our sergeant had caparison- 
ed his mule and himself in the military style of the coun- 
try, with a good bridle, but an enormous bit and snaffle, 
with some ornaments, though faded, which shewed it had at 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 193 

some day kept good company and seen some service. His 
saddle was a Spanish peak and high pommel, formed upon a 
powerful saddle-tree, which threw out, above the mule's haun- 
ches, two firm limbs, which saved the mule from rubbing; 
and, at the same time, carried his valise, which contained a 
good stock of powder, ball, and some flints ; a tinder-box, 
steel, and matches ; what he called a kitj being a collection 
of various mechanical implements, nippers, plyers, gimlets, 
chissels, files, hammers, a vice, turn-screw, cork-screw, 
awls, knives, needles, from a sail-maker's needle and palm- 
thimble, to cambric, of which he had some assorted papers ; 
with ladies' thimbles ^^Jbr love tokens;''^ besides tapes, 
bobbins, scissors, and buttons and buckles of various de- 
scriptions. A blue military short coat, with standing collar 
and yellow buttons, at one of which, on his left breast, was 
suspended the yellow ribbon and silver medal of Carabobo ; 
his pantaloons, of Russia ; a black stock ; quarter-boots, 
with one spur, the rowel of enormous prongs, sufficient to 
put an elephant in action ; his black belt bore a stout cu- 
^hilla^ or sword, broad, heavy, and sharp, of twenty-seven 
inches; his holsters carried a pair of pistols, and on the 
right side a short Prussian rifle hung to a running swivel 
attached to the saddle ; on his head, at times, a leather in- 
fantry cap, with a long plume of feathers and beautifully 
coloured with the cochineal, the indigo, and the turmeric of 
the country, and a cockade of the same three colours ; at 
other times, when in a city such as Merida or Tunja, his 
grenadier's cap appeared; and w^hen mounted, a lance of 
ten feet, to which was attached a stout line, wound round 
the shaft, the other end in a slip-knot attached to his upper 
arm ; the ferule of the lance resting in an iron socket attach- 
ed to his stirrup; over his saddle he carried, in suitable folds, 
a good blanket, which was to be his coverlid by night, his 
romero when it rained. 

I have enumerated the provident care of the sergeant, be- 

25 



194 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

cause, in the course of the journey, very few articles of 
what he had laid up were found superfluous, and some were 
of very great convenience in a country where there are no 
arts or trades of any kind, but the merely agricultural, ex- 
cepting in the great towns, and even there not many nor 
good of their kind. I had provided myself with convenient 
articles, such as a hammer, small vice, some files, &c., and 
I would advise the carrying of a small hatchet or tomahawk 
in good order, at the saddle bow, as in the luxuriant valleys 
and passing through the bamboo thickets, such an article will 
be found of much convenient use. Though we had not any 
just cause to apprehend any design upon us, we followed 
the practice of the country, in arming ourselves, each of us 
having a good sabre, and pair of pistols ; the natives of the 
country who are met on the road are usually armed, some 
with muskets, or musketoons ; this perhaps is the conti- 
nuance of an old custom, or it may have arisen out of the 
war, which generally casts forth some unfortunate beings on 
the highways. The knowledge of the language is above all 
things the most necessary. Our sergeant spoke it with more 
fluency than correctness, and more vivacity than is usual to 
Englishmen, and never failed to make himself understood, 
and nine times out of ten agreeable. When he found a su- 
percilious or a knavish alcalde, or a pilfering muleteer, he 
was not so agreeable, for he not only took care to make 
known his own importance, and his ribbon and medal of Ca- 
rabobo, but the importance of the Coronel de los Estados Uni- 
dos del Norte to whom he was attached by the commandant 
of Valencia. 

We now rambled in a desultory chain, Indian file, over 
the plain of Valencia. Leaving the city, the road leads 
nearly south, and a gentle descent towards the lake, which 
we passed in a line obliquely to the westernmost extremity, 
the ground rising as the lake receded, where the road led 
more westwardly, and rose to the right and left into the 



VISIT to COLOMBIA. 195 

ridges which bound it on both sides. It was noticed on en- 
tering Valencia, that at the termination of the city, on the 
west end, there was one of those promontories, which shoot 
out like great arms from a long sea-coast chain ; from the 
west side of this projecting point, a chain of mountains more 
depressed, not one third the height of the mountain of the 
coast, throws its prolongation to the south-south-west, and 
extends thence beyond Varinas : from the front of this range 
of depressed mountains, issue a multitude of rivers of various 
magnitudes, so that they intersect the plain, their direction be- 
ing generally to the south-east and east, and rendering the pas- 
sage to the greater Andes impracticable for half the year, and 
inconvenient the other. The route which travellers pursue is, 
for a considerable distance, along the summit and across the 
beds of many of those rivers and ravines. The greater Corde- 
lier, which proceeds out of that which passes to the east in front 
of Merida, and is therefore called the Paramo of Merida, is 
here in sight, its dark base separating the verdant horizon 
from the gloomy clouds, which for a great part of the day hide 
its loftiest line. To give a familiar idea of their position, the 
promontory behind Valencia west, may be presumed to repre- 
sent the point or summit of the letter A, and the depressed 
range from which the rivers issue south-east to form the right 
line of the letter ; leading to Varinas, the greater Andes are re- 
presented by the left line or continuity of the Merida Paramo. 
Now the road from Valencia, instead of pursuing the right 
line towards San Felipe, or the left line leading towards Va- 
rinas, turns abruptly to the north- nest, at a point correspond- 
ing with the cross-line at the intersection of A, where a ridge, 
a little more elevated, pushes across, and terminates near Bar- 
quisimeto. 

The villages and towns in succession from Valencia, are 
Tucuito, Carabobo, Chirgua, Las Hermanas, Tinaqu ilia, Pal- 
mas, Plomera, San Carlos, thence San Jose, La Cey va, Quebra- 
da de Camouraka, Tinaco, where the road abruptly breaks 
off to the north-west, by Camarocate, Caiesita, El Altar, Ba- 



196 TISIT TO COLOMBIAe^ 

ladera, Gamalotal, Lamorita, Rastrajos, Caudares, toBar- 
qiiisimeto. 

Tucuito, though it be the first town, is not the first habi- 
tation ; the town stands on the left side of the river Guata- 
paro, which has its sources in the ridge west of Valencia, 
and on its sides a beautiful valley, with many handsome 
plantations. Having crossed the Guataparo, the ground has 
a gentle ascent to some distance, when it becomes level, 
flanked with fine forests. A ravine is darkly visible through 
the deep sliadows of foliage always verdant, it being the now- 
dry bed of a rivulet, that, at a different season, is overflow- 
ing. Crossing out of this ravine, the side is steeper than the 
descent ; gaining it, the traveller issues out of darkness into 
broad sunshine. The sergeant immediately galloped off an 
ascending ground, which opened in beauty and grandeur 
before us ; he placed himself, with his lance couched, wait- 
ing to display the positions, and, looking round to mark 
every point, waited our approach ; I believe it was only a 
suspicion, for I thought I saw the sergeant eye his yellow 
ribbon and his medal, with his dark blue eye more bright 
than usual ; in fact, this was the field of Carabobo, and like 
my uncle Toby's aid de-camp, he was now placing himself 
in a position to besiege Dendermond once more. We fol- 
lowed him, after viewing some decayed bamboo huts at the 
opening of the thicket by which we entered ; these^ he told 
us, were the tents of the Spaniards' picket guard the night 
before the battle ; and he went on to relate where the line 
was formed, where the reserves were placed, where Bolivar, 
and where Paez, where the British legion, and where the gre- 
nadiers of Colombia, were placed, for he was there among 
them ; where this evolution took place, and that charge 
" made a finish of the fight." 

I returned to the bamboo bivouac, and found the stones 
which formed the hearth, and the ashes of the fires whereat 
they cooked, many of them, their last supper ; the country 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 19T 

people, who do not, as in some other countries, destroy wan- 
tonly for amusement, had even spared this bamboo ruin. 
The fragments of earthen-ware, the charred fire- wood, were 
there too — and time only, which has not respected Palmyra 
or Persepolis, had alone made an impression on it. Perhaps 
there was some pride in this forbearance of the Colombians ; 
it may have consoled some friend of one who had fallen on 
that field, or some orphan, some widow, or some parent, 
who had been a guest at Boves' bloody entertainment in 
Valencia; to such persons this ruin would yield console- 
ment, as an emblem of Spanish power, in its desolation. 
I confess, upon examination of myself, it was not the mere 
ruin that induced me to return to it a second time ; but 
sympathy with those to whom the emblem would carry con* 
solation. 

If a military man were to search the world for a field of 
battle, for any number under 10,000 men, no finer position 
could be found. Rising out of the ditch, at the entrance, the 
burst of light, after the dusky thicket that is passed through,, 
for an instant produces a halt, and a most picturesque and 
extensive field opens upon the eye, ascending about a quar- 
ter of a mile, where the sergeant had posted himself with his 
face to the south ; he showed all parts of the field of batde. 
From his position in front, the ground slopes, for half a mile^ 
gently to the entering place or the bivouac, and is level there 
for three or four hundred yards, when the ground rises more 
abruptly, and seems to consist of a succession of rising plat- 
forms, covered by very thick woods and wild shrubbery; 
and farther on, the trees more open, and farther still, the deep 
and dark boundless forest rising to a mountain height : on the 
right or west there was a long and more rapid descent, and at 
the distance of a quarter of a mile from where he stood, was a 
remarkable dry ravine, about fifty feet broad and forty feet 
deep, the water- scooped sides exhibiting a mass of angular 
"Stones, and abruptly opening from the sod a perpendicular 



VISIT to COLOMBIA, 

Steep. Behind him, at about eight hundred yards, com- 
menced a range of hills, covered with verdure, of the shape 
of large stacks of hay, the intervals exposing other conical 
hills ; and behind these a deep shady forest. Every thing 
could be seen from this spot : the sergeant was eloquent, 
and I have no doubt accurate, in his narrative. 

The Spanish General La Torre, who had succeeded Mo- 
rillo, commanded in this action ; Morales was his second. 
The latter, monster as he was, displayed, on this occasion, 
the firmness of a soldier, and the talents of a commander ; he 
collected as many of the flying Spaniards as he could, and 
formed them into four heavy platoons, of which he formed 
a hollow square, placed himself in the centre, and kept up 
a running fight until he passed beyond Tucuito ; some of 
the cavalry of Paez pursued the fugitives with the lance to 
the neighbourhood of Valencia. 

This victory had a signal influence on the revolution ; and 
led to a rupture between the two Spanish chiefs, for which 
both had been some time prepared. The emissaries of the 
latter had spread abroad insinuations to the disparagement of 
La Torre, intimating that he had connived at the defeat ; that 
having married a lady of Caracas, he meant to remain in Co- 
lombia ; and that he was at heart a democrat. Morales in 
fact aspired to the command himself; La Torre was dis- 
posed to sustain the humane compact for regulating the 
mode of war agreed upon between Bolivar and Morillo ; 
Morales was opposed to it, and in favour of an exterminat- 
ing war. His ferocious disposition, and his license of in- 
discriminate plunder, had made Morales the favourite of the 
Spaniards and renegado Colombians, who sought to persuade 
themselves, that with due energy the republicans would be 
either forced to lay down their arms or be exterminated. La 
Torre was a polished generous soldier, and looked to a recon- 
ciliation by a magnanimous policy. Morales was as unprin- 
cipled as Morillo, and as sanguinary as Boves, and above 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 199 

all, was determined to secure a fortune by plunder at all 
events. The attacks on La Torre's honour and reputation 
were made known to him, how they were prepared and circu. 
lated, and left him no alternative, but to send Morales home 
in irons, or to resign ; his generosity forbid the first, and 
when his resignation and the causes were unequivocally as- 
signed in Spain, he was appointed to Puerto Rico. Among 
the stratagems of Morales, he caused, through one of his 
agents, formerly a resident of Caracas, imputations, such as 
above noted, to be published in some gazettes of the United 
States, and those gazettes were sent to Madrid as proofs of the 
allegations! Morales, upon the retirement of La Torre to 
Puerto Rico, broke the treaty concerning the conduct of the 
war, and carried on a scene of ravage and plunder along the 
seaboard, spreading alarm from the gulph of Paria to Cartha- 
gena, and carrying desolation to the borders of Merida and 
Truxillo ; at Bayladoros, when we reached that place, the in- 
habitants had fled to the Sierra with their cattle and movea- 
bles ; we were within two miles of the Spaniards, who were at 
Las Puentas when we arrived at Gritja. Morales in 1822 
issued a furious proclamation of sanguinary menaces ; which 
being directed against all persons of foreign countries who 
should visit Colombia, Captain Spence, of the United States 
navy, promptly issued a declaration, that the United States 
would not submit to such menaces against their citizens who 
visited Colombia, and in such spirited and magnanimous 
terms, as to induce the tyrant to refrain from executing his 
menaces. 

We passed through Chirgua the 29th of November, and 
thence to Los Hermanos, and Tinaquilla. The mid-day sun 
was more ardent than we had felt it since we left Valencia ; we 
therefore had moved at half past four o'clock in the morning, 
and were at Tinaquilla by seven o'clock, where we break- 
fasted on our own chocolate, and had an abundance of fine 
oranges, alligator pears, and delicious bananas. The fervor 
of the sun on the naked rocky declivities had not abated, at 



^00 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

four o'clock, P. M. ; butrwe determined to proceed, and, de- 
scending by winding and abrupt rocky passages, we gained 
the gravelly dry bed of the small river Tinapon, which flows 
into the Tinaco, and so darkened by rich vegetation that night 
seemed already to have come upon us, and gave to our path 
the temperature of a subterranean vault. Emerging from this 
abyss, wc ascended by winding ravines and shelving rocks^ 
and it was already night when we gained the bank on which 
stands the village of Palmas. The river whose bed we tra- 
versed is a contributor to the Tinaco, which is itself a tribu- 
tary to the spacious river Portugueza. 

The alcalde of Palmas, a dapper, greasy looking, fat little 
■man, belied his externals more than can vi^ell be imagined 
without experiment; he required no messenger, and, although 
it was eight o'clock at night, and more than usually dark for 
the climate, he had my bridle in his hand the instant I halted, 
and answering his own questions, for he made no pause to 
Sicar, said — "the Senor shall have accommodations, the best 
of the village — and whatever he can possibly want." It was 
wholly unnecessary to reply, as he had anticipated every thing 
which a traveller needs ; and we followed this good-natured 
Memejante of the governor of Barrataria, who led us to a cot- 
tage of no great compass, where the cocks and hens were 
already at roost on the brace beams of the thatched roof, 
vwhich appeared to have been japanned with the best black- 
ing, or like the inside of a smoke-house. After dislodging 
the poultry over the spaces to be occupied by our hammocks, 
which we were under the necessity of suspending in irregu- 
lar angles, and not parallel as customary, for the space would 
not admit of three in a row, we left our sergeant, who had, 
with great pleasure to himself, and to our advantage, taken 
upon himself the duty of hanging up Miss Elizabeth's ham- 
mock in the best place, and that of the colonel in the next 
contiguous position. The floor of our apartment was rather 
uneven, as not much pains had been bestowed on it for per- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 201 

haps the last six months, or years, to sweep it, or to level 
the inequahties, in some of which water, not very pellucid 
nor fragrant, appeared to have been some time undisturbed. 
We repaired, therefore, to the corridor — the grey haze had 
become somewhat more transparent,^ and some handsome 
formed trees had risen in the caprice of nature on the green 
slope, reproving by their brightness and beauty the negli- 
gence of the waking dreamers, who vegetated in the rank- 
ness of their own manure within doors. 

The practice of constructing cottages in all the warm cli- 
mates, exposed to rain or inundation, has a strong resem- 
blaiice. The scite and dimensions of the ground plan being 
measured off with a line, or guessed off by the eye, a bank 
of earth, raised about two feet above the natural platform, is 
prepared, with different degrees of dexterity, skill, or indif- 
ference ; in the warm regions the inappreciable bamboo fur- 
nishes the uprights at the angles of the proposed structure, 
and the jambs of the door- ways ; the temperature instinctively 
determines the elevation ; where the atmosphere is subject 
to cold damps, rains, or winds, the roofs are low ; where the 
heat is uniform, or sometimes ardent, the height of the 
house would serve as a kind of comparative thermometer. 
So, where the heat is constant, mats of the palm, and other 
abundant materials, form the thin partitions within and with- 
out, but every where the roof, thatched or tiled, presents a 
colonade, a veranda, or, in the language of the country, a 
corridor fronts or surrounds the house, and this is more or 
less spacious, in proportion as the wealth and inclination to 
obtain comfort by accommodation prevails. This corridor 
was, in fact, only a continuation of the sloping line of the 
roof, beyond the upright partitions ; and either a continua- 
tion of the rafter-like timbers of the roof, resting their ends 
on a line of upright posts, beyond the wall or partition of 
the house, or an addition subsequently made. As this de- 
scription of the cottage-architecture will serve for all parts of 



202 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

the country, allowing for the circumstances to which we have- 
referred, the description has been the more circumstantialj 
though the example was one of the very worst I had seen. 
The place we took outside was the raised bank, which form- 
ed a continuation of the platform within, and afforded a seat 
upon which the sergeant, with an untiring attention and an- 
ticipation of our comfort, placed some dry hides to interpose 
between our garments and the floor. Here we had an excel- 
lent chicken stew, some good potatoes, apios, sweet yuccas, 
and an abundance of eggs, and arepa, or bread of Indian 
corn, to which keen appetites gave a delicious and enviable 
flavour; and as we had brought a small supply of wine, as 
much as our means of transport would admit, we were here 
sufficiently fatigued to derive all the benefit and pleasure 
it could afford. Our little oval alcaldi appeared to delight 
in our good spirits, laughter, and fun, in which we were ac- 
customed to indulge on the sights we had seen, or in the 
mind's eye. 

I could not but contrast, in this kind of cogitation, the ha- 
bitations at Palmas, with the light, airy, ever clean bungalows 
of Hindustan ; where filth never remains an inmate, nor the 
garment ever soiled ; where the pure sweet mat covers the 
commonest floor, where no garment is worn that does not 
testify to its snowy purity. The taste and luxury of smok- 
ing was not less striking. In Hindustan, as in South Ame- 
rica, all persons smoke, every man, every woman, every child ; 
in South America, the luxury is in the acrid aroma of the 
tobacco, augmented by the perfume of the vanilla. In Hin- 
dustan, it is the poorest people only who smoke the cherut^ 
(or cigar,) in its raw state ; the waterman, who carries his 
goat-skin leather bag full of water all day at a cent a bag ; 
the bearer, who travels with a human load on his shoulders, 
in a palankeen, from morning to night, or after, at two hun- 
dred cents a month, refines m the luxury of smoking, and 
embalms his tobacco with aromatics or assafoetida, and di- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 203 

vests it of acridity by passing the vapour he inhales through 
pure water — -and, when he can, through rose-water. A fe- 
male, of the same relatively humble station, would scarcely 
use a cocoa-nut for this purpose ; art and ingenuity had 
made smoking not only inoffensive but salubrious, by means 
of what is called a hooka, which, I make no doubt, will find 
its way, along with commerce, to the plains and cities of the 
Andes, when, instead of concealing the cigar from the consd' 
jo^ they will be proud to exhibit its elegance, and smoke with 
him — con-amore — out of the same pipe. But we are yet 
in a world that has been locked up three hundred years. Be- 
fore the Colombians have reached an equal national antiquity 
with the children of Bramah, they will, perhaps, abandon 
cigars, and adopt the hookah. It is but justice to say of the 
lovely women of Colombia, that they applaud the ladies of 
the United States for not adopting this custom from the 
men : it continues to be the custom in South America to 
hand cigars, as it is in India to hand beetil^ or a nosegay, or 
to pour rose-water on the hands of visitors. At the public 
and private assemblies and feasts at which I was a guest, 
both in Caracas and Bogota, and at the theatre, where smok- 
ing was formerly general, it is no longer in practice. In. 
some private houses the practice of smoking is continued, 
and I have been sometimes so well clouded or smoked, that 
with a little aid of the imagination I might presume that I 
was on my way to the seventh heaven of Mohamed ; where 
nothing could be seen except it was the black eyes of the 
angels, peeping and twinkling like stars through the clouds. 



204j 



CHAPTER XIV. 

Leave Palmas—Tinaco— hospitality there — kind manners—abundance of fish-«" 
visitors, 'Li;e!r kindness — move before sunrise— bivouac — march in the eve- 
ning' — s orni approaching — take shelter — oriental customs — a frail habitation 
• — oil-cJoth cloaks beyond value — men and mules huddled in a small space — 
heavy rain— delightful sleep — San Carlos — very Asiatic looking city — churches 
resemble mosques — female peepers — latticed windows — military command- 
ant, his lady and her sister — amiable frankness — their excellent chocolate — 
good cream — wheaten cakes— sweetmeats — apprize us of bad roads — pas- 
sed St. Jose — Ceyba — fine-flavoured cow's milk— a venerable widow — Caye- 
sita — El Aitar, a remarkable pass — obliged to climb it — Humboldt's Jicus 
gig-antica or buttress tree — Bejucas — rio Coxede, here called rio Claro — some 
notices of fig-trees. 

After sleeping, fearless of impending showers from 
the roosts above us, and indifferent to the little pools of un- 
gracious scent beneath our hammocks, — we were on our 
mules, before the dawn could reveal what more was to be 
seen ; the alcalde, with his chubby, good-natured face, and 
his japanned leather breeches, was as punctual as his pro- 
mise (a very novel occurrence among some of that species). 
Some bottles of fine cow's milk were ready for delivery, 
a basket of eggs, and some indifferent oranges, which he ex- 
cused for not being as good as they should be, because, he 
said, he did not make them. — The roosting, milk, eggs, and 
all, did not require a dollar to pay the whole reckoning 
—•and in Palmas, I question, if we could be found better 
for a thousand. 

It was on the morning of the thirtieth, and we had a long 
warm ride over the elevated ridge of Palmeria. As good- 
natured alcaldes are, in this part of the country, rather 
scarce, we pushed for the handsome and gay village of Ti- 
naco, or, as some of the inhabitants named it, Tanac, stand- 
ing on a brilliant river of the same name, which is a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 200 

tributary to the Portugueza and Apure. As we rode along 
the street of entrance, a military officer, who had just come 
to the gate, seeing us a little dusty, perhaps languid, po- 
litely invited us to enter ; the gates being thrown open, our 
grenadier, without stopping to enquire what we should do, 
made his salute, and rode prompdy into the patio ; and we, 
*' nothing loth," were soon unhorsed, our mules placed in 
the coraly with a rich service of young sugar cane ; our 
cook gave us our chocolate, almost as soon as our ham- 
mocks were slung up, and we took our breakfast, while a 
gay cantarista^ in an adjoining apartment, strummed her gui- 
tar, and sung a lively air, unconscious of so many strange 
listeners. This town was neat, the quarters clean and 
commodious, and, though the sun shone so bright and 
warm, the air was quite sweet and elastic ; the bed of the 
river, just in sight, was throughout almost as white as snow, 
composed of pebbles, against which the sprighdy stream 
seemed to sparkle. The sergeant, who knew what was 
peculiar to all parts of the route, procured a basket, and 
was not absent five minutes, when he returned with it near- 
ly full of fish, much resembling the winter perch of the 
Delaware, and these added variety to our day's dinner. 
Fruit was abundant and fine, and, unless it was for the use 
of our attendants, we rarely sought beef or pork ; the poul- 
try being every where fine, and the eggs and chocolate al- 
ways a ready and pleasant repast, in quarters, or in the forest, 
or on the cool paramo. 

Several of the most respectable citizens of both sexes 
honoured us with a visit of courtesy, and I remarked how 
solicitous they were not to appear too inquisitive ; the young 
folks, in the usual ingenuousness of their years, pressed us 
to stay a week at least, and assured us that our time should 
be made agreeable ; some sent fine bananas and pine apples, 
others, some small, but fine flavoured oranges, as eviden- 
ccs of their earnestness for our stay ; we were not behind 



206 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

them in expressions of thanks and respect, and refused, with 
an assurance, that good inclinations were not wanting, but 
that our stay could not be protracted. We took the op- 
portunity to lay up in some baskets, arepa bread, rice, sweet 
bananas, some raspadura or cakes of sugar, some bottles of 
fresh milk, a small basket of limes, plenty of young onions, 
a dozen of live fowls— and closing our evening with choco- 
late and arepa — -we were in our hammocks before nine 
o'clock, determined to rise before the sun. 

On the first of December, at three o'clock, A. M. we 
were in motion, and had made considerable progress by 
eight o'clock, when we halted under the shade of a lofty 
forest, on a bank, from which issued a limpid stream. We 
hung up our hammocks, resolved to rest and refresh during 
the heat of the day. By the aid of the sergeant's magazine of 
flint, steel, and matches, a fire was soon blazing in front, 
and our chocolate was soon frothing. Our limes, which 
were excellent, enabled us while they lasted to make a be- 
verage of lemonade, with the aid of the raspadura^ and some 
tortumaSf that is, bowls made of the shell of the calabash ; 
no traveller goes without a tortuma, for the convenience of 
drinking on the road. We had a pleasant nap in the shade, 
while the heat abroad was more than usually ardent ; our 
mules had alongside a rich pasture, and were well refresh- 
ed by three o'clock, P. M. when we moved off the ground. 

We soon emerged from the forest upon the open sloping 
plain ; the ridges on our right were much diminished by dis- 
tance, those on our left obscured by clouds ; a delightful 
green sward, with a few dispersed clumps of low thicket, 
some fet^trees of various figures and elevation, were scattered 
over the plain ; the green sod was ornamented with wild 
flowers and flowering shrubs, some of which were familiar, 
and the greater number strangers to us ; the atmosphere, 
however, soon became humid, and the air close and sultry, 
the clouds appearing ready to burst in the south-east. An 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 207 

open cottage, or caravanserai, which had been once inhabited, 
but now tenantless, stood on the road side ; I determined to 
take shelter there from the evidently approaching storm, not- 
withstanding the ariero's unsought advice, and accordingly 
rode in beneath the roof, and mules and all followed in suc- 
cession. 

The usages in Colombia, and all South America, in rela- 
tion to the traveller, and accommodations on the road, corres- 
pond remarkably with those of Asia. The duties and func- 
tions of alcaldes are exactly those of the cauzis of Hindustan. 
Whether it be custom or institution I had not inquired, but 
in the villages, and often on the road where there is no vil- 
lage, but where some pulpureia^ or huckster's shop is usually 
established, the traveller finds a shed, that is, a roof thatched, 
without any side walls but the posts which sustain the roof. 
In the peninsula of India, places of this kind are called choul- 
tries, in the west of India, serais ; whence the Persian cara= 
vanserais. There had been a pulpureia at this place, but its 
debris only remained, and it had been so long since the hand 
of repair had touched our choultry or caravanserai, that the 
palm leaf thatch had suffered the light and the rain to find 
more places of admission than between the pillared sides. 
We proceeded as usual to hang up our hammocks, so that 
we should (as much as possible) escape the pelting of the 
storm. Bipeds and quadrupeds were all huddled beneath 
this fragile roof. Our trunks were ranged end to end on the 
leeward side, on which the sergeant, with his saddle for a 
pillow, and his velice as shelter on the outside, placed him- 
self, and the others on dry cow hides, one serving to sepa- 
rate the body from the floor, and another, like the roof of a 
house, to cast off the rain : and as each had his blanket, they 
lay down with perfect indifference to the approaching rain, of 
which the sprinklings gave warning. The mules and their^ 
associate muleteers had the farther end of the serai to them- 
selves, and their panniers, ropes, and provender formed a 
line of demarcation between them and our hammocks. The 



*jp 



208 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

oil-cloth cloaks were on this occasion of particular value ; 
we placed them over our hammocks, so that, when the rain 
came on heavily, though it poured through the thatch 
abundantly, we remained perfectly secure and dry ; the rain 
was little more than mizzling when the grey light came on, 
and we finished a repast, in order to close all baggage for an 
early march, but the skies soon became troublous, the thun- 
der roared and reverberated among the mountains, and the 
clouds poured their force with all the volumes of tropical tor- 
rents; but we went to sleep without any more discontent 
than if we were snug in Philadelphia, and slept later than we 
intended ; the air was so sweet and exhilarating, we did not 
awake tillpast six o'clock on the morning of the 2d Decem- 
ber, and having a beautiful clump of trees and odoriferous 
wild plants close to our hosp'idage, we had our trunks brought 
out and arranged for a comfortable meal, seasoned by a fine 
appetite, of chocolate, eggs, and arepa bread. We were 
mounted, and crossed the Oropu, time enough in advance 
to see San Carlos rising before us, embowered in lofty trees 
and shrubbery ; the domes and turrets of its churches, in as- 
pects so oriental and picturesque, that the idea of an Hindu 
pagoda seemed so real, and the whole picture so like Futty- 
ghur in Hindustan, that for an instant I was at a loss to say 
whether it was an illusion or a reality ; the narrow streets and 
the intervals between houses, and the exuberance of vegeta- 
tion, particularly the banana and other tropical plants, that I 
could not persuade myself that I had not been there before. 
The houses soon became continuous, though the streets 
were still not more than ten to twelve feet broad, and we 
sauntered along the pavement, admiring the very striking 
Asiatic style of the houses and churches ; the lozenged lat- 
tice closing small windows, which did not however conceal 
the eyes of curiosity peeping through them. Here too the 
military commandant was in advance of our wishes, and we 
were conducted through an ample patio, bounded on every 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 209 

side by a handsome and spacious corridore, in which the fif- 
teen inch tile was more than usually well dressed and laid. 
The inconvenience incident to my accident at Valencia, ren- 
dered it necessary to halt this day, as, though I carefully 
avoided complaint, I suffered much pain before we reached 
Barquisimeto. 

The rank of the commandant here was that of major, and 
his lady and her sister introducing themselves with an amia- 
ble frankness, we soon became perfectly familiar. They 
did not enquire about our concerns ; but were very much 
delighted to learn (I suppose from the serjeant) that the 
young lady, who left home in a feeble state of health, was 
restored to the full bloom of health and robustness, and in 
excellent spirits, by the air of Colombia. They compli- 
mented us with some uncommonly fine chocolate, and what 
we had not for some time seen, good cream, wheaten cakes, 
and sweetmeats ; fine fruit never omitted. They wished us 
to stop a week, and apprised us of the difficulties of the road, 
particularly the pass of El Altar ^ and the winding valley lead- 
ing over the plains to Barquisimeto. 

On the 3d we passed through the village of San Jose, 
three miles from San Carlos, and the village of Ceyba ; be- 
yond which the road turns off at Camaroukata to the north- 
west ; we sought refreshment without success at a Posada 
in Camaracata, or Camaroukata — for our muleteers and guide 
differed as to the name : we were more fortunate in procur- 
ing some cow's milk, which a venerable old lady, in deep 
mourning, milked into the calabash bowls for us, and of 
which we had more than three or four quarts, for which she 
asked no more than a media, that is, a sixteenth of a dollar. 
The abundance and excellence of the article made it so 
cheap, that I feared she wronged herself, and i inft rred from 
her attire and the downcast eye, and air of melancholy about 
her, that adversity had dealt hard with her, that she had been 
stricken by the war, and had, perhaps, to mourn the compa- 

27 



210 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

nion of her youth ; she seemed to be gratified m serving 
strangers, and this gratification seemed to be all to her, and 
the value nothing ; for when asked the price, she seemed not 
to seek even thanks, but looked as if to learn whether or not 
we were pleased ; and when she named a price, and re- 
ceived what she asked, it seemed to be with reluctance, and 
as if she would refuse, but feared to offend by an appearance 
of false pride ; we thanked her from our hearts, and sug- 
gested that the compensation was not enough; to which 
she replied only by a negative turning of her head, continu- 
ing to look at us with silent kindness for a time ; and while a 
tear found utterance, her eyes were fixed upon us, as if she 
had lost some one, husband, son, or daughter — and the cur- 
rent of tender feelings gushed out as we bid her adieu — she 
stood immoveable, with her eyes fixed upon us as we con- 
tinued our way, to a considerable distance ; I turned often 
round, and she still was there ; her attitude unchanged ; 
and when we turned the last angle which was to separate us 
from her view for ever, I returned a few paces back to look, 
and still she stood fixed, musing upon that sorrow which 
we were solicitous, but could not ask her to unravel. I 
learned, farther on, that she had lost her husband, who was 
a Frenchman, and her youthful son in battle. 

We reached Cayesita the 3d, and barely halted to procure 
some guarapa for our attendants, prior to passing El Altar. 
After winding through a long and shaded mazy alley, over- 
arched with rich foliage and thick forest trees, the lane of 
gravel washed by a shallow, but limpid rivulet, the spread- 
ing sides of which were garnished by an abundance of the 
finest water-cresses, (of which we took care to bring some 
away) we slowly crawled along, over pebbles beautifully 
rounded, and of different degrees of brightness, yellow, 
white, brown, and red ; we were at last ascending, to our 
left, the path still only fit for passage in Indian file ; sud- 
denly breaking from the covert, we could discern the ariero 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 211 

and his man, on the summit of a steep rock, hauling up by- 
ropes the last trunk of our baggage. We had ordered on 
the baggage an hour before our departure, expecting that 
they would gain the valley before us ; in a few minutes we 
found the road occupied the whole way across by a lofty- 
vertical rock, seeming to say, " thus far shalt thou go, and 
no farther." 

The muleteers had been under the necessity of unlading 
the mules, and we must of course follow them. At the 
first view it would seem as if we had come the wrong road, 
but the fact was not so, for there was no other ; and it seemed 
unaccountable, that no one should have made a road at either 
side of this rock, which it appeared could be done with no 
other tools than an axe and a spade ; but every one must 
pass the same climbing passage. Our sergeant, to whom 
this place was familiar, dismounted, and leading his mule to 
the foot of the rock, it was chmbed without hesitation ; we 
also dismounted, and our mules ascending with no more 
difficulty, we followed the mules by stepping where they 
had stepped ; for myself, I looked down with amazement 
when I gained the top.. It was near an hour before we 
could proceed forward in our descent to the valley, which, 
as soon as it opened upon us, presented a prospect in every 
way different from any prospects we had already seen. 

Before I left Caracas, I had read in Humboldt's Personal 
Narrative, Vol. IV. p. 75, of a tree, which he calls a new 
kind of fig-tree, and he names ^^Jicus gigantea^ from its 
attaining the height of an hundred feet ; and in the moun- 
tains of Buenavista and Los Teques, the Jicus nympharfo- 
lia''^ The description he has given of this new Jicusy in- 
duced me to seek it as we passed the mountains whereon he 
described it as growing with its stupendous buttresses, but 
I suppose it escaped me in the midst of those clouds in 
which the mountains were involved at the time I passed. 
The ardour of the sun in passing the plains and the slopes, 
tempered by numerous rivers and streams, and forests ex- 



21S ¥ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

eluding air, and retaining moisture, made the difference of 
temperature agreeable, when compared with the suitry close 
atmosphere of this valley, where the magnitude of the trees 
was such as I had not seen before on any part of the route. 
The two immense trees at Maracay, which he names Za- 
mangy 2iTQ great curiosities, and my young companions saw 
them with admiration ; to me, however, they were less ob- 
jects of curiosity, because, as magnitude has relation to some 
measure, the Zamang was diminutive by my standard of ad- 
miration, which was the banyan tree of Hindustan. 

Though disappointed of seeing the buttress tree on Cu- 
quisias, it was the first which attracted my attention in this 
valley of El Altar. In this sultry, deep solitude, surrounded 
by perpendicular walls of mountain rock, this buttress tree, 
by Humboldt called Jicus gigantea, flourishes in lofty lux- 
uriance, with mighty buttresses, which seemed so pow- 
erfully sustained as to defy all force but actual dissolution. 
The elevation of many was more than 150 feet, and the shaft 
of the tree of fantastic shapes from eight to ten feet diame- 
ter ; but a horizontal line three or four feet from the ground, 
taking the outer lines of two opposite buttresses, would give 
double that diameter. The soil of the road, or ravine, lying 
across the roots of those trees, was washed away by succes- 
sive floods, and the roots themselves, larger than ordinary- 
trees, lay in all directions, sometimes two feet above the 
earth, sending forth numerous lesser roots ; which com- 
pelled the traveller to wind round those trees in all directions, 
from the difficulty of passing over them ; and the valley ap- 
peared covered with a monstrous net of these stupendous 
roots. The buttresses are well described by Humboldt, re- 
sembling in their forms masses of wood, having their outer 
base line five, six, or seven feet from the vertical stem of the 
tree, with intervals between, showing the upright stem, and 
composed of compact timber, a growing part of the tree, 
without separation from it, only that the buttress-shaped part 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 213 

has the sloped line, from five to six or eight feet from the 
ground, and extending outward to five, six, or seven feet at 
the base. 

The branches of this tree proceed in a horizontal direc- 
tion from the stem, at twenty to thirty feet from the ground, 
and often not lower than fifty or sixty feet ; but in this val- 
ley, the Bejucas^ a kind of a giant vine, throw their elastic 
limbs from branch to branch, and from tree to tree, sending 
down limbs of different thicknesses, from the size of a 
twine, to three and four inches in diameter, descending the 
trunk of the buttress tree capriciously, and sometimes inju- 
riously to the traveller ; sometimes they appear with a hang- 
ing curve like a slack rope, sixty or a hundred feet above ; 
again they are found, firmly embracing tw^o contiguous 
trees, and stretched between, at two, three, five, or eight 
feet above the ground, so that the foot passenger, and the 
man on horse or mule, is sometimes tripped, or drawn off 
the horse or mule. In such cases, a sharp tomahawk or 
hatchet would open a passage, over dry ground, where, to 
avoid it, there may be a necessity of crossing a mire or pool, 
of which the depth or danger is not seen. The trees of 
other species, some oaks and ash trees in the same valley, 
look like shrubs, along side the Jicus giganticus. The Rio 
Coxede or Rio Claro, flows on the right side of this valley, 
having its sources in the great Cordillera, which is a conti- 
nuation of that of Merida. Its upper streams commence 
about twenty miles west of Barquisimeto, and pursue a 
course, generally north-east, to near El Altar, where it sud- 
denly winds to the south, or a little curving to the west of 
south, when, in the latitude of Aurare, it takes a decided 
course a point east of south, it unites with the Tinaco, and 
with the Rio Portugueza, which descends into the Apure, 
This river derives considerable celebrity from the sanguina- 
ry battle fought there, in which, more than five-hundred 
men on each side were put hors de combat. 

Without any other pretensions to knowledge of the natural 



214 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

sciences, than that of a general reader and casual observer, my 
pursuits have made me more conversant with books than 
botany ; the name given, by Humboldt, to this tree with large 
buttresses — -Jicus gigantica^ has added to some difficulties 
and incongruities, which, among others, have casually taken 
away the pleasure looked for in seeking knowledge. 

The fruit, so well known in all temperate climates, is by- 
Botanical writers named Ficus Carica^ from the country from 
which it is supposed to have been derived. Now the ordinary 
signification of the r\2ime Jig tree is " a tree that bears figs.'* 
The mode of classification by the flowers, will not sanction 
this appellation to other trees, and this contradictory mode of 
denomination is not calculated to afford true knowledge, nor 
induce respect for the science. Among the trees which are 
named ^cwj, the number is considerable, and the dissimili- 
tude remarkable — such as fall under recollection and refer- 
ence at the moment, are the following : — 

1. Ficus J Ficus Carica, Fig-tree. 

("the Indian fig-tree,") ^, i 

2. Ficus Indicus, 4 the arched fig-tree, I tiie r>anyan-tree 

Ithegodtreef J of Hindustan. 

3. Ficus Indica, i "^"'^ paradisiaca, the banana. 

' I musa sapientum, the plantain. 

4. Ficus itifernalis, Palma Christi, Castor-oil plant. 

5. Ficus Indices granis, Cactus cochinillifer, ^ ^^ chineTl^C ^'ctus' 

6. Ficus Cactus ofiun-') /-, ^ \. i-. • , , 

> Cactus opuntia, Prickly pear. 

7. Ficus e^ie'antica of ) _, 

Humboldt, 5 Buttress-tree. 

8. Fig-tree of Tana, of the New Hebrides, mentioned in Fos- 

ter's Cook's Voyages, vol. ii. p. 334-392, 

There are some others, as the Ficus Sativa, Ficus ariday &,c. 
but not one of the above bears the least resemblance, in magni- 
tude, foliage, flower, fruit, or figure, to the Ficm Carica. The 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 215 

second, or banyan tree, bears a small red berry, about the size 
of a red currant : this tree is happily described in the ninth 
book of Paradise Lost, though I am inchned to think, from a 
striking error in Milton's description, that he has confounded 
the banyan with the banana^ giving the banyan tree all its 
magnificent limbs and extension ; and, instead of its own 
small laurel-like leaves, he has given it the beautiful leaves 
of the banana : the passage is as follows : 

There soon they chose 

The fig-tree, not that kind for fruit renowned, 

But such as at this day to Indians known, 

In Malabar or Decan, spreads her arms, 

Branching so broad and long, that in the ground 

The bended twigs take root, and daughters grow 

About the mother tree, a pillar'd shade : 

There oft the Indian herdsman shunning heat. 

Shelters in cool, and tends his pasturing herds 

At loop-holes cut through thickest shade : those leaves 

They gathered, broad as Amazonian targe^ 

And with that skill they had together sewed. 

The tree so well described in other respects, than the 
leaves broad as Amazonian targe, is exact, only that Miltoii 
implies it bears no fruit. How came Milton to be mistaken ? 
He was in fact misinformed of the natural fruit and leaves of 
the tree, as he was of the geographical distinction in the same 
elegant description, for Malabar was part of the Decan when 
he wrote. Perhaps the mistake was produced by the banana 
being also named Jicus indicaj which really bears " those 
leaves as broad as Amazonian targe :" botanical science, in 
Milton's time, was yet scarcely in its infancy, and India and 
its products little known to literature ; he confounded two 
plants, taking the broad leaves of the one for those of the 
other. Here then the error may have arisen, and has been 
confounded, from his authority, by naturahsts generally. 

The banana and plantain are only species of the same ge- 
nus ; in every thing they are exactly the same, but in the dif- 



216 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ferent magnitude and flavour of their fruit : the banana is 
a sweet luscious fruit, and when ripe is superior in richness 
to the fig ; it is of the consistence of a soft butter pear, but 
without acid : the fruit is not produced single like the com- 
mon fig, or the apple, flowering and coming to maturity on de- 
tached branches or single stalks, but in bunches, side by side, 
from a thick elastic and strong strap-like membrane, issuing 
from the head of the plant ; for it is not in the botanical sense 
a tree ; its growth is from the elevation of ten to fifteen feet, 
but its stem is not wood ; there is no wood in any part of 
the plant. The root, when divested of the numerous 
shoots which it throws out, appears like a yam ; the roots 
planted are placed in rows at ten feet apart ; from this root se- 
veral suckers rise, but they are timely arrested in order to se- 
cure the stem that is preferred. From the eye of the growing 
sucker, a small tube shoots up resembling the rolling of a fine 
pea -green China paper on a round stick ; when about three or 
four feet high, another tubular roll issues through the first, 
and thus it continues to produce new tubes till it gains its 
natural height ; as the plant elevates itself from within the first 
tube, and the second, and so to ten or to fifty are expanded, 
it throws out beautilul leaves of eight to ten feet long, and 
three to four feet broad, which bend outward, giving the figure 
to the plant : the base of the stem is formed of a green, pithy, 
fibrous, vegetable substance, in which the stem of every leaf 
has its share. It is an annual plant, and there are more than 
twenty species, only differing in the sweetness or insipidity 
of their fruit. The great plantain, sometimes called miisa 
sapientum^ produces a very large, and, when raw, insipid 
fruit ; but it is used for food in various shapes ; roasted in 
the embers, it becomes an agreeable food, much resembling 
the sweet potato ; boiled with meat cut up into short pieces, 
it boils like a potato, and is much preferable to the yucca. 
The bearing ligament of this plant shows frequently fifty to 
sixty plantains of ten to sixteen inches long, and two inches 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S17 

thick, each weighing from one to four pounds. The fruit 
of this plant is the main food of seven-tenths of the people, 
who arc not opulent, in all parts of South America, where it 
thrives ; it is more generally an article of transport and sale 
than any other in the country ; every road presents mules la- 
den with plantains ; I have met fifty in one drove with no 
other lading ; every pulpureia deals in them, and it composes 
the principal stock of the shop. The name of musa paradu 
siaca, is perhaps derived from some traditional prejudices, 
among which are the use of the leaves, as Milton describes 
them serving as garments for mother Eve in Paradise ; ano- 
ther tradition is, that the sweet banana was itself the forbid- 
den fruit, but whether emblematic from its shape, or what 
other allusion, cannot need inquiry. It is a mistake, also, 
that the tree is cut down to get at the fruit ; that is not neces- 
sary, though it decays annually. These remarks are more 
than I intended ; similar remarks as to the misnomer Jicus 
would apply to every other tree so named. 

We continued our march in this entangled, tiresome, and 
sultry valley, having the Coxcde on our right for several 
miles, the thickets unsubdued concealing the river, and rank 
with the luxuriance of the cane and the palms, of which I 
discerned several date trees. Here I saw first a plant which 
rises only in a single leaf nearly as large as the banana, thence 
denominated the wild plantain ; it is used for packing cof- 
fee, cacao, and other articles in bales. This digression, 
though not entirely called for, serves nevertheless to make 
better known some of the natural productions of Colombia. 



28 



^18 



CHAPTER XV. 

Enter a rich country— Baladera—Gamalatol — Santa Rosa— opulence and change 
of manners — Barquisimeto — ^wade the river — ascent— pious alcalde — remain 
in the street — exhibited two hours— relieved by a military man passing — Dr. 
F. Mullery — the commandant's quarters — who is absent — a present of fruit 
from the village opposite—Senor Lara — alcalde finishes his oraciones — and 
finds an un-christian like cause of offence — feel indisposed — notice of Barqui- 
simeto — military depot at Santa Rosa—country adjacent — rich in products- 
commandant — malice of the pious alcalde — interview with the commandant— 
and find him a warm friend — alcalde bites his thumb — anecdotes — shock of an 
earthquake — march 10th December — dismal plain — fit theatre for Milton, Vir- 
gil, or John Bunyan — Quibor — find a pure atmosphere— birds of plumage and 
song — paroquets and cacao — the linnet of Europe here — the perfume of the 

locust blossom reveals its presence, yet unseen Tucayo its river and 

rich valley — halt in the suburbs — a sombrero manufacturer — hospitality— en- 
ter the town — received in the commandant's quarters— his lady's kindness — 
her orgeat — and medical treatment — visited by Dr. Leonardo, the friend of 
Dr. Mullery — he commends the lady's prescription, and why — visitors — travel 
carried in my hammock by peons. 

Our first place, after passing La Bocca de la Montana, 
was Baladera, a small village engaged in cultivation ; thence 
we proceeded to Gamalatol, and here was very perceptible 
more business and bustle than I had seen since we left the 
valley of Aragua ; the route from the valley to the road was 
a continued but not a rapid ascent, and we began to feel the 
delight of a soft fanning breeze, while our track changed to a 
descent as we passed through the small hamlet of La Muri- 
ta by Restrajos to Caudares, from whence to the bed of the 
river Coxede, which here takes the name of Santa Rosa, the 
descent is more steep. It was a festival, and the young 
folks were displaying their finery, not a spurious shew, but, 
though gay in colours, and more like the fashions of other 
countries, the whole place gave evidence of more than 
usual industry, activity, and opulence. It was observed, as 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 219 

we approached this place, that the children, even to the 
youngest, were clothed, and in a neat and tasty manner. 
Many young ladies, with their beaux, were dressed in silk 
of bright tints and in a most excellent taste ; though there is 
no part of Colombia where the females are not remarkable for 
their small feet, of which I don't know why they should not 
be proud, and I suppose that it is in the same frank spirit they 
are not so coquettish as many young persons, who, with the 
same inclination to display, affect not to know it. The neat- 
ness of their silk shoes, laced in the sandal fashion, and the 
saucy breeze ascending from the adjacent river, displaying 
more of their silk stockings than they seemed to intend, 
could not but attract the eye of the traveller sauntering along, 
and he must be a stoic who could not afford a smile on per- 
ceiving the pleasant disorder of the pretty Senoritas ; it 
would be a sort of miracle if they did not laugh too, on 
seeing, by the strangers' significant leer, that their con- 
fusion was understood. Indeed it was not possible but to 
admire their graceful and elastic gait, or to feel pretended re- 
sentment, when they sought to be revenged by laughing 
louder at the dusty wayworn figures that smiled at the wan- 
tonness of the breeze. 

We had intended to see more of this lively place, but, on 
enquiry of a civil gentleman whom a touch of his hat led me 
to ask the distance to Barquisimeto, he pointed to it on an 
elevated platform not far from the bank of the river, on the 
opposite side. But he was not content with wordly civility, 
he invited us to halt and rest at his house, and welcome, and 
that we should find that place much more comfortable and 
agreeable than at the other side of the river ; we were grate- 
ful and thanked him, though we declined, and he accompa- 
nied us -to the usual fording-place, and told us how to pass 
over. Our sergeant was, however, well acquainted with the 
ford, and we parted with this generously. disposed Colom- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

bian, who knew no more about us than that we appeared to 
be strangers. 

The breadth of the bed of the Coxede, at this place, is 
nearly a mile across — perhaps the day's ride augmented the 
space, — and presents a mass of rounded stones, none very 
small, and some of considerable size ; the water, at this sea- 
son, was low, and was divided into several narrow currents. 
The sergeant, as usual, led the van, and though the streams 
were sometimes strong and washed our stirrups ; but, having 
gained the left bank, we had now to ascend a steep slope, 
which had been cut since the earthquake, and which we all 
agreed could not be less than half a mile up to the plateau. 
There New Barquisimeto stood at some distance on our right, 
and while we made our way to the main street, the sergeant 
galloped off in search of the alcalde, and quarters. He 
found the alcalde's house, who was out on church affairs ; 
we had therefore to wait ; and we did wait for about two hours, 
seated on our mules, and cracking jokes at each other and at 
the ideas entertained by the crowd which gradually collected 
round us. It was the second occasion, on which civility and 
hospitality, every where else so voluntary and kind, w^as want- 
ing ; it was literally wanting ; for our march had been rapid 
for three days past, and the inconvenience to which I was 
subjected by the fall at Valencia, rendered any other than a 
sitting position desirable ; nor were my young companions 
indifferent to rest, though they made a joke of their enter- 
tainment at Barquisimeto. We enquired for a posada, there 
was none; we enquired for the military commandant, he 
was out of town ; so we made merry with the prospect of 
lying in the street. 

Were it not fit, that incidents such as occurred here, 
should not be unknown to others who may travel in the same 
track, I should pass over the folly and disregard of the char- 
acter of his country, and even his town, exhibited by the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S21 

alcalde of Barquisimeto. Our sergeant followed this pi- 
ous magistrate to church, and made such intimations as he 
supposed likely to prevail ; but his answer was " they must 
wait." We had no alternative but to wait; as la paciencia 
vince todoj or, as Sancho Panza has it, patience is a plas- 
ter for all sores, we had to try the panacea, much to the 
amusement of some ladies, within some adjacent iron bars, 
who, as we did not distinctly see them, I set down as nei- 
ther so beautiful, nor so well dressed, nor with such pretty 
satin shoes, nor, above all, such neat silk stockings as those 
on the other side of the river ; and in the ill-natured mood of 
the moment, I insisted they were jealous of the roses on 
Elizabeth's cheeks, which the removal of her chip hat and 
the dust seemed to have exposed merely to vex them. Af- 
ter all, it was more ridiculous to be vext, than for those stran- 
gers to gape at strangers, especially a female, of a distant coun- 
try ; who was, in fact, at the same moment making fun of 
these curious incognitas, with her no less funny brother. 

The piety. of the alcalde was not yet exhausted, though 
our philosophy had almost run out, for the grey light was 
not very distant ; good magistrates compensate for many 
things by being pious ; like charity, it covers a multitude of 
sins; it was therefore not wonderful that he would not 
be disturbed at his oraciones, though the business of his 
magistracy stood still — In the midst of our exemplary pa- 
tience, a gentleman in military uniform was passing on the 
opposite side of the street, he crossed and accosted us in 
English, enquiring if he could serve us ; his uniform led me 
away from my point, but I enquired if he knew Dr. Mul- 
lery — " I am that person," said he, " and you must be Colo- 
nel Duane." We were in an instant acquaintance, though 
they were the first syllables we had ever exchanged — he 
moved on with *' follow me." The sergeant, who had just 
returned from the third or fourth siege of the alcalde, took 
the word from the doctor as quickly as if he was going to 



TISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

Storm a breach ; and was at the heels of the doctor in a mo- 
ment ; we followed down the street, and a pair of folding 
gates flew open, and presented a spacious patio^ into which 
we all followed, and leaving the charge of the mules to the 
servants, and our shooting utensils to the care of the ser- 
geant, the doctor conducted us into a spacious chamber, 
where a long table covered with green cloth stood, and a young 
officer busy in writing. The young gentleman had but a 
word from the doctor, when the room was cleared, and two 
sleeping apartments adjoining, shewn to us, and our ham- 
mocks were immediately hung up ; while Pedro had q^lready 
found his way to the fire-place, and in a few moments fur- 
nished us with a welcome cup of chocolate. 

This house belonged to the government, and was the 
head quarters of the staff, and the commandant Colonel 
Manrique then absent was daily expected home. It was in 
the same quarters Colonel Todd lodged when he was on 
liis route to Bogota ; and we found letters here from his se- 
cretary, Mr. R. Adams. 

The doctor left us, with directions to the sergeant to call 
on him for whatever we wanted ; who took the opportu- 
nity to shew his ribbon, and then to remind the doctor that 
they had been on service together ; that he was Sergeant 
Marcus Proctor^ oflos Grenaderos de las Gardas Colombia- 
nos — attached as orderly to Colonel D. of America del Norte^ 
by the commandant of Valencia^ Coronel de los Grenaderos. 

In half an hour every thing was in order, and we soon sat 
down to an excellent fricasee and some good bread, and 
fruit from the other side of the river, ordered by Senor 
Lara, a resident of the opposite village, who very soon after 
entered, and I recognized in him the civil gentleman who 
wished us to remain at his house. He apologised for intru- 
ding, but having heard of Colonel D. before, and one of 
our servants, who had stopt in the village, having told him 
whom we were, he had ordered a little fruit, and determined 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 223 

to make himself known, as he had for many years been ac- 
quainted with the history of the person he came to see. Mr. 
Lara was by birth a Spaniard, but a man of education and 
liberal principles, and had distinguished himself in the cause 
of Colombia. I had no expectation to find any one in a po- 
sition so much secluded from the ocean, who knew any thing 
of me, and was truly surprized to find him intimately ac- 
quainted with my former political and military concerns, and 
had been for many years. His intercourse was constant while I 
remained, which I was compelled to do, and fortunate to find 
a skilful and friendly physician, under whose care I was com- 
pletely restored. 

The alcalde at last finished his business in the concerns 
of another world ; yet the dignity of the magistrate was 
offended by our accepting any quarters but through him, 
and signified that we must remove instantly. As the man 
was either a fool or a knave, 1 determined to play the old 
soldier with him, and pleaded, what was really true, that I 
should not be able to leave my hammock for three or four 
days, which threw him into a rage. It would have been an 
unequal contest. My fluency in his language was not such 
as to authorize a war of words, I therefore simply signified 
I was not able if I were willing to move, and that there I 
should remain till Colonel Manrique returned. Seiior La- 
ra had sought to restrain him, without consulting me, and 
though he was quieted he was not satisfied. My indisposi- 
tion really required the immediate care of Dr. Mullery, who 
I felt satisfied would not have placed me where I was with- 
out a perfect confidence in the commandant. In a few days 
I became so far recovered as to go abroad, and we fixed upon 
the 11th for our departure. We had, during this time, an 
opportunity of seeing and hearing all that concerned Barqui- 
simeto. On entering the town the streets were actively 
occupied by muleteers and mules, and a multitude of ill- 
clad boys. The streets were about twenty feet broad, weU 



SS4j visit to COLOMBIA. 

paved, and although this place had been founded and built 
since the earthquake of 1812, it had already the appearance 
of an old town. The plateau upon which the town stands, 
seen from the river, presents a steep perpendicular bank to 
the river, while on the right side the descent to the river is 
a gentle slope. The surface of the earth after ascending the 
platform was without grass, some coarse wild plants formed 
some tufts, and solitary thistles were dispersed here and 
there, exhibiting the only verdure ; looking to the west 
and south and south-west, the absence of verdure, and the 
presence of a discoloured grey sooty surface, prevailed all 
round, only where the shadows of objects here and there ris- 
ing abrupt, served to make the spectacle more desolate, 
but seemed still more desolate when the eye was turned 
to the eastward, where perpetual verdure and luxuriance 
gratified the eye. On our left, as we entered the town, in a 
line oblique to the verge of the plateau, the sergeant pointed 
our attention to the sciteof the city, which suffered total de- 
struction in 1812. Nothing of walls or any object more ele- 
vated than mounds of earth formed by the ruins of the pita^ 
©f which the whole place was built, now remained ; and these 
were only real graves which had sloped into their then shape, 
from the irregular masses of the buildings overthrown, and 
in which the inhabitants, as well as a battalion of nearly se- 
ven hundred men, were entombed. The only alteration in 
this heap of ruins, were some attempts made to penetrate the 
tombs where persons resided who had the reputation of 
riches ; the summits of those heaps rounded by rain, or their 
intervals filled up, are all that remains of the city, which was | 
said to contain eight thousand inhabitants. Those alone es- \ 
caped who were engaged abroad on business, or at the plan- j 
tations in the valley ; for at Barquisimeto, or on the plain '-'^ 
thence to Quibor, near Tucuyo, the cactus, of perhaps twenty ' 
species, constitutes the only vegetation. The ruins are j 
about two miles west of south from the new town. The j 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S25 

mountains to the north-west and west, at the first glimpse, 
had the appearance of chalk, and produced the first idea of 
snow ; but, on closer looking, they were too dull and mot- 
tled, and in fact chalk or natural lime. About three miles 
north of the town, near the margin of the plane, is the town 
of Santa Rosa, which I did not visit ; it was, after the earth- 
quake, and at this time, a military depot and magazine. 
Seen at a distance, its appearance was handsome, and per- 
haps owed an air of cleanliness to a free use of the material 
so abundant in the adjacent mountains. It has a monastery, 
of which I heard no good, and made no further enquiries, 
as what I heard, from authority above misrepresentation, 
would not bear painting. 

The valley on the east side of the Coxede (here called 
Santa Rosa) is uncommonly rich in plantations of sugar, 
cacao, coffee, and other productions. 

The cacao of Barquisimeto is reputed to be equal to any 
that the country produces, and by some to be superior in 
richness and flavour to all others ; though not having a di- 
rect access to a port, from which the valley is bounded by 
that lofty cordillier, which separates it from that of Mara- 
caibOi and the arid plains of Coro, the product of Barqui- 
simeto reaches a market under some other name. San Fe- 
lipe and Puerto Cabello formerly carried off much of it, and 
the little ports on the gulph of Triste. The passage of the 
paramos made the transport too expensive, and the war had 
given the activity of the valley, on the west side, another 
direction ; peace restored^ this valley will not be behind any 
in production or enterprise ; and, under all the evils of war, 
these happy people appear to have surmounted the general 
distress with more effect than any I had an opportunity of 
seeing. The very great ignorance which still prevails in 
other countries concerning Colombia is more particularly 
applicable to this part of it ; and it is the more remarkable, 
because its manners and industry are said to have received 

29 



SS6 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

an advantageous improvement from a number of foreigner^ 
who some years ago were cast there by accident, and prefer- 
ing it for its seclusion from the sea- coast, fixed their resi- 
dence there, and bringing with them experience, and pro- 
ducing emulation by their successful example, have en- 
riched their posterity, and given them the character and the 
tsteem which they merit. 

On the night of the 8th the commandant arrived. He 
had not been apprised of the occupation of his quarters, and 
it being late, he did not disturb us. The alcalde, however, 
waited on him early in the morning, and made a doleful re- 
port on our occupation of the quarters without the alcalde's 
authority ; and, as it appeared, did not hesitate to embeihsh 
his representation with some fiction, mingled with asperity, 
against those insolent Inglesias / 

In the mood produced by this complaint, the colonel found 
Dr. Mullery, lieutenant Bache, Elizabeth, and myself, at 
our morning chocolate. The doctor soon perceived that the 
commandant was disturbed by something, guessed that the 
alcalde must have been raising a storm in his own puddle, 
and at once introduced us severally to him ; after a few ex- 
pressions of civility, he asked my name again, as if to be as- 
sured, and, On my stating it, was somewhat surprised by 
his asking, '* Arc you Colonel Duane to whom Congress 
voted thanks at Cucuta, in 1821 ?'' I replied in the affirma- 
tive. He said the alcalde had been making an unnecessary 
disquietude ; hoped we would think nothing of it, and 
begged we would make ourselves at ease, and we should 
have whatever we wished and the place afforded ; and inti- 
mated that he would wait on us the next day. He came 
however in the evening, and I was fully compensated for 
the alcalde's authorative incivilities, by the pleasure of this 
amiable soldier's acquaintance. I found him frank and 
communicative, particularly on ancient and modern history, 
and military affairs, the revolutions of the age, and the su- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 227 

periority of the representative form of government ; and, 
though he was devoted to the existing constitution, and con- 
sidered it as best adapted to the circumstances of the country 
during the war, he preferred, as he said Bohvar himself pre- 
ferred, the federal form for a period of peace, and offered some 
ideas which were bold as they were novel to me, but irresis- 
tibly true. He said he owed me some thanks, as well for 
my friendliness to Colombia as a politician, but as a military 
man, and was in possession of several of my military publi- 
cations ; and referred to a memoir which I had written, (and 
which was translated into Spanish by my friend M. Torres,) 
and circulated through Colombia ; he was the only person 
whom I had an opportunity of knowing, who had that me- 
moir, and which I was solicitous to obtain, as I had not re- 
served one. We spent some hours on the 9th together, and 
were to have corresponded — fate has denied me that satisfac- 
tion. I intimated to him, that being now perfectly restored 
by the skill and kindness of Dr. MuUery, I should depart 
the next morning (10th), instead of the 11th before proposed. 
His character appeared in a new and endearing light ; he ex- 
pressed an apprehension that the improper behaviour of the 
alcaldi had induced this intention, and entreated me not to 
attribute that conduct to any other cause than his egotism. 
I satisfied him that his own conduct and esteem had erased 
every kind of dissatisfaction ; and before we parted he sat 
down and wrote a letter to the commanding officer at Tucuyo, 
our next halting-place, and Dr. Mullery wrote another to Dr. 
Leonardo, a gentleman who had studied medicine, and visited 
the hospitals and lectures at Paris, London, and Edinburgh. 
These letters were very useful to us subsequently. 

Colonel Manrique was considered as among the most ac- 
complished officers in the Colombian army, he was under 
thirty at that time. Maracaibo, having been surprised by 
Morales and a superior force, it was the fortune of Colonel 
Manrique to be placed in command, and to expel the Span- 



2^8 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

iards, for which he was promoted to the rank of General of 
Brigade, which many said he should have had before ; soon 
afttrr I parted from him, the severity of the duties, and the 
exposure which was unavoidable, broke down his fine per- 
son and constitution, and Colombia was soon after deprived 
of one of its best heads and liberal hearts. 

The attentions we had experienced from Dr„ MuUery, 
above all others, the kindness of Mr. Lara, who daily sup- 
plied us with ananas and bananas, narangas and nisperos ; 
and the civilities of the worthy commandant, made Barquisi- 
meto, which was far from interesting in itself, very agreeable. 
Our amiable friend, Dr. French MuUery, the companion 
and countryman of Dr. W. Murphy, whom we knew at 
Valencia, had been also his fellow-student. His talents had 
obtained him general esteem, and his professional skill caused 
. him to be appointed to the army which passed the isthmus 
of Panama to Peru. His professional duties, which rescued 
hundreds from the grave, exposed him in passing up the 
Chagres, and deprived Colombia of a man of rare merit, 
and his friends of one who was always sure of esteem where 
known. 

On the 5th of December, at twenty-five minutes before 
four o'clock, A. M., we felt a very sharp shock of an earth- 
quake ; I had reclined on my hammock with a book, and 
Elizabeth was also reading. The sensation was felt by me, 
as if a person had passed beneath my hammock and given 
it two rapid shakes. Lieutenant Bache, who was in the cor- 
ridor, felt it at the same instant, but it could not have occu- 
pied four seconds, and nothing further occurred. 

On Tuesday, the 10th of December, we left Barquisime- 
to, and entered upon its arid and inhospitable plain : our 
first course was ascending and through a village, such as 
John Bunyan might imagine for the residence of despair 
and desolation, and from thence our route was due west. No 
words can convey a distinct and expressive picture of this 



VISIT TO eOLOMBIA. 229 

plain, or the vegetation that covers it, or of the mountains 
which are first seen in the north-west, composed, apparent- 
ly, of chalk, with here and there some tufts or creeping rib- 
bonds of the thorny cactus ; there were some patches which 
seemed to afford grass, but it had the hue of the chalk it 
barely grew upon ; vast ravines cut the sloping sides of 
these mounds of chalk, and presenting on one side the 
brightness of the sun's rays, and on the other the shadow of 
the impending bank, formed the only exceptions to its 
wretched monotony. Our route lay about fifteen miles from 
these mountains, but narrowing to a valley, of which the 
south-east side at first thinly clad with forest, as we proceed- 
ed became as chalky on the left as on the right side, till the 
plain below became narrowed to about six or seven miles. 
The whole surface, on each side of our path, was a dense 
thicket of cactus, impenetrable to man or beast. Even the 
ground on which our mules trod was overgrown with a dwarf 
species, I believe the creeping cerus ; to fall upon which 
would be as injurious as to fall upon a flax-dresser's comb. 
The cactus of three or four species are abundant on the Sier- 
ra in front of the sea at Laguayra, and in other places where 
the soil will produce nothing else ; but on this plain I per- 
ceived varieties with which I had no previous acquaintance. 
Humboldt, I believe it is, who likens a species of cactus to a 
large candelabra ; there is some, but it is an imperfect simili- 
tude : this species is a tree with a stem or stock of twelve to 
twenty inches diameter ; about four or five feet from the 
ground, it throws out lobes covered with stars of five points, 
in the centre of which a long thorn projects to some part of the 
edge of the first, another and another lobe grows in capricious 
flatted figures, so as to present no leaf nor limbs, but such 
thorny cakes of vegetable substance, as compose the co- 
chineal cactus, opuntia, or prickly pear ; these strange-look- 
ing limbs protrude from the stem to the height of ten to 
twenty feet, and, from the absence of foliage, seem to be the 



2S0 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

remains of trees that had undergone the scorching of fire. 
Others of this thorny tribe, spread m long ribbons of about 
two inches wide and half an inch thick, covered with the 
like five-pointed stars and thorns. I have estimated some 
which I have fixed my eye upon and followed above sixty 
yards, and then without seeing whence it sprung or termi- 
nated. The common grovelling cactus, or opuntia, was 
abundant along the skirt of the thicket, which appears to 
have been a road cut across this miserable plain, that would 
have spared the poets the exercise of invention, in describing 
the borders of hell and the valley of sin or death — by the fit- 
ness of its lonely desolation. 

As when heaven's fire, 
Hath scath'd the forest oaks, or mountain pines, 
With singed top, their stately growth, though bare, 
Stands on the blasted heath .... 
.... The causeway to hell-gates, 
On either side, disparted chaos. 

The heat was ardent, as we ambled through this lane of 
dreary uniformity, where man, nor beast, nor bird, nor brook 
to assuage thirst was seen. The soil, stript by the feet of the 
mules, appears like a compound of grey ashes and chalk ; 
and where, after we had somewhat farther advanced, some 
patches of the soil were bare, the earth had sunk some ten 
or twelve feet in a compact mass, its surface whole, and 
the steep edge of the unsunk soil perpendicular ; the sur- 
face sunk, shewing about three hundred yards by fifty, be- 
low the former level. 

Wondering much to see human dwellings, after we had 
marched twelve ijiiles through this dismal avenue, and our 
usual stock of water in our flaggons of calabash, which we 
constantly carried, each at the pommel of his saddle, the dust 
and heat, the impression of such a desolate place, induced 
us to turn into Las Horcones (probably from horcone, a 
rope of onions) — though certainly there was no place in 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 231 

sight where onions could vegetate — we found water here 
as scant) as with ourselves, and were very glad to find that 
there was some guarapa, fresh fermented, of which we made 
refreshment, and learned that we had ten miles yet to ride 
before we should meet a rivulet. 

We had derived some benefit from our halt, but with 
such a long march before us, we pushed on for Quibor, 
which we reached some time before night. The village 
any where else would be unsightly ; but after our day's ride, 
it appeared gay and comfortable. A fine stream passed 
through the village, and our appetites for food, rendered a 
refreshment of tajo or dried beef, though dressed with gar- 
lic, not unpalatable ; fatigue had left us without curiosity to 
see more of Quibor, than our line of march, so disposing of 
our last bottle of wine, we retired to our hammocks before 
night, and before the sun rose, we had left Quibor in our rear. 

After passing Quibor a few miles, the cactus disappeared, 
our route was an ascent, and led to a low range of verdant 
mountain, and amidst fine hedges, where we once more 
found birds of beautiful plumage and song, which were so 
abundant before we reached Barquisimeto, that they ceased 
to be as interesting ; though the screams of the paroquets, 
and others of the parrot kind, swarm where the cacao is cul- 
tivated, here they became more interesting. Here I saw 
the linnet of Europe, and recognized its note before I saw 
it. We were ascending now through a shaded lane, cooled 
by rills of pure water, the appearance of luxuriant grass 
covered with dew drops, very much resembling parts of Eu- 
rope, as well in the shrubbery, as in its temperature ; and 
the perfume of the rich locust blossom, made itself frequent- 
ly known to us unsearched for. 

We gained the summit, and the rays of the sun sudden- 
ly beamed upon us, like the trick of a pantomime ; the 
shade had so abruptly disappeared, and the range of vision 
was now so much enlarged, exposed a broad valley, through 



2B2 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which a spacious river rolled from the south-west, whereon 
the bright sun shed so much hght, as to render it incon- 
venient to dwell upon ; the vast Cordillera that separates 
Merida Valley, was the boundary on the west side of the 
river, at about seven or eight miles distant. It was the Tu- 
cuyo river, which flowed to the north, and at our feet on its 
east side stood the city ; the plantations of cacao, sugar, and 
coffee, spread along the shores of the river in a northern di- 
rection, and the road was lively, and visible along the slope, 
by which we descended towards Tucuyo ; looking to the 
right, or north, and the banks on both sides exhibited fer- 
tility, luxuriance, a close and wide spread cultivation, splen- 
did sugar fields, and orange flowers, and the euphorbiums, 
soft green banana plants, betrayed the rich harvests of ca- 
cao and coffee, which they were placed to protect and shade. 
Cotton trees presented their snowball Hower, in clumps, rows, 
or insulated. 

In the midst of these contrasted prospects, and inclining a 
little to the left of our point of view, the opulent and hand- 
some city of Tucuyo was now in distinct view. The heat 
was here more than was agreeable, and about three miles 
from the town I hung up my hammock in the corridor of an 
industrious hat-maker, who was at work upon a hat of the 
cuquisias fibre, or agave, which he wrought with great pa- 
tience, neatness, and constancy, while he sung a patriotic 
vanta, in which the theme and conclusion of every stanza 
was Bolivar ; it was this incident that drew my attention to 
him, and perhaps it was the expression of my countenance, 
between fatigue and satisfaction on hearing the song and sub- 
ject, that induced him to lay down his work, and, with a 
courtesy that would have merited to be worth ten thousand 
dollars a year, which his manner and hospitality would not 
disparage, he pointed in a few words and gestures to what 
he thought good for me, and I was, in a few seconds, with 
the sergeant's aid, swinging in my hammock, and the unaf- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 233 

fected Sombrerero at work as if nothing had happened, and 
relating to his wife, and two sprightly, indeed lovely children, 
his notions of the Seiior — that, from being accompanied by a 
grenadier, and all his retinue wearing swords, he must be 
some general officer, and the young officer his aid-de-camp, 
and as for the senorita^ she appeared una angela de la guar dial 
The good dame from within, who had, in the same kind 
spirit as her husband, plucked some fruit from the surround- 
ing trees, advanced as if approaching to pay homage, and 
with a smile of beneficence, and hospitable emotions, would 
present to my daughter a near turtiima (calabash) of excel- 
lent lemonade, hinting with her significant eye, and " nods 
and smiles to make an argument," that when she had re- 
freshed herself she would help the object of her care. 

We spent two hours in this place, amused by the inno- 
cence of the children, and the natural elegance and content- 
ment of mind and manners, displayed in this humble cot- 
tage. They had procured milk for us, eggs, and abundant 
fruit, and it was with difficulty they would accept more than 
what we deemed one-third of the value of what we had from 
them : a thousand dollars would not purchase half the delight 
and gratification we derived from them at less than a quar- 
ter of a dollar; we endeavoured by some little presents of 
trinkets with which I had provided myself for such purposes, 
to leave something to the children for remembrance : the 
worthy Sombrerero and his wife seemed to think we should 
not have parted so soon. 

The heat of the sun had abated, and we travelled slowly 
along the descending road, and entered by the main street, 
in which stood the head quarters of the commandant ; the 
sergeant handed the letter of Colonel Manrique ; the gates 
unfolded, and we were in an instant in the patio. 

Upon our dismounting, the lady of the commandant came 
forward in deshabille; her appearance was pleasant and kind 
as her manners ; her person was uncommonly large and 

30 



^34 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

roundj and of corresponding symmetry. I have seldom 
seen a female of equal magnitude and rotundity, yet her 
feet, which, when in full dress, in neat blue satin slip- 
pers, relieved by bright silk stockings, were remarkable for 
their smallness, and disproportion to the otherwise well 
formed and agreeable superstructure ; yet it was the dispro- 
portion of different habits ; those little feet were her orna- 
ment, and like all her countrywomen, she had a right to be 
proud of them. A long couch-formed bench, covered with 
a crimson covering, stood along the wall of the saloon into 
which we were introduced. On our left, as we entered, was 
the lado separadamente of the respectable Seiiora ; on the 
right was the camarita assigned for my accommodation, ad- 
joining to which Elizabeth and Richard had their camaritas, 
and our baggage and attendants were as conveniently placed 
as if we had predisposed every thing for our own convenience, j 
I felt much indisposed, and my hammock being, as usual, \ 
prepared " in the first intention," I retired to rest, leaving the I 
young folks to amuse and be amused with the good-natured I 
Seiiora, and a number of female friends, who had fled upon 
the wings of rumour to see the foreign curiosities. Orgeat, 
sweetmeats, and Muscadel wine were served ; and while 
the good lady occupied her guests and her friends, she had 
undertaken to perform Lady Bountiful for el viejo coronet — 
and presented, with her own hands, a bowl of the universal 
specific of those regions, an infusion of sliced bitter orange 
in warm water, with sugar and some aromatic ; as it was not 
only very innocent, but very much to my taste, I was not 
wanting in deference or belief of her assurance, that it was 
like the " parmacity, the sovereignest thing in the world for 
an inward bruise." I took it as it was administered, and 
the good lady, with as much kindness as if I had l^een her 
father, placed the coverlid over me, adjusting my hammock, /*^j 
gave it a gentle swing, I suppose to rock me to sleep; what- ' 
ever was the intention, xhe effect was that Ifell into a de- \ 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 235 

lightful slumber, awoke in a profuse perspiration, and shift- 
ing entirely, shaving and washing, before I was suspected to 
be awake, I appeared in such excellent spirits, that the good 
Senora was more confirmed in the efficacy of the specific 
warm infusion of bitter orange ; and it was not for me to 
question conclusions, which were sanctioned by the change 
in my appearance, after the fatigue, lassitude, and disguise 
of dust, and soiled travelling habits, in which I made my 
first appearance. The commandant was a portly, well-look- 
ing, but rather a reserved man, and seemed to think his 
good Seiiora was too weighty for an angel ; but the good 
Senora herself was not only persuaded that she was angelic, 
and took no great pains to conceal her beauties in all the 
fulness of nature, and really tastefully arranged ornaments. 

I determined to remain here another day, as in the even- 
ing I found a tendency to fever, indicated by the state of 
my pulse and skin. Lieutenant Bache had sought for Dr. 
Leonardo, to deliver the letter of Dr. MuUery ; he was at his 
plantation, two miles distant, and thither Richard determined 
to go and make geological and botanical researches on the 
road. He found the doctor at his hacienda, and, after spend- 
ing some time together, and viewing his collections of books, 
natural curiosities, and some well-conceived original sketches 
of the doctor's own execution, they walked together to town, 
and I had the satisfaction to see him at the very moment 
when I wished for advice ; he soon set me at ease, and re- 
commended a repetition of the good Senora's specific, which 
he said he placed no other confidence in than as it promoted 
perspiration, and nothing more was required ; I was anxious 
to proceed, but postponed it for a day, and he recommended 
to me to travel, for a few days, in a reclined posture. In 
India this would not have been difficult ; but the doctor an- 
ticipated my difficultities, and overcame them, by stating 
that the commandant would issue an order for twelve peons, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

and, with my hammock slung upon a good round bamboo, I 
might be carried on the shoulders of the peons. 

The commandant seemed pleased to have an opportunity of 
doing something to show his good will, and he rose and issued 
orders for the required number of peons to be at his quarters 
at seven o'clock in the morning. An excellent dinner of 
poultry, game, and fine sausages, with sallads and fruit, and 
good Catalonia wine, and bread, as good as any of Phila- 
delphia, was prepared on this day, and company of both 
sexes invited to partake with us. We found the company 
agreeable, and desirous to do every thing that could con- 
duce to our pleasure and entertainment. With the usual 
chocolate, I retired early to sleep. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

Kindness and hospitality — departure — direction of the route— intersection of 
the mountains — aspect — Humano caro Baxo — a knavish alcalde — tricks upon 
travellers — efFectively repelled— singular position of this place — and the road 
from it— dangerous elevation of a path or shelf on the side of the deep valley — 
a Aa^o— dangerous declivities— the safety of the mules— conduct to be observ- 
ed — sloughs and mule — ladders — rain — oil-cloth cloaks excellent — niglit tra- 
velling and rain — discovery of quarters — military rencontre — accommodation 
for travellers— baggage not arrived— part from our new military acquaintance 
—and learn the news. 

The orders of the commandant of Tucuyo were punctu- 
ally obeyed ; breakfast was prepared early, and some fine 
rolls of bread were put up in the delicate plantain leaf, to 
serve us while fresh on the road; and the peons having 
brought with them a suitable bambooy of about four inches 
diameter and twelve feet long ; my hammock was aflixed 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 237 

to the bamboo at each end, and placing myself in it, after 
taking leave of our hospitable entertainers, we left Tucuyo 
about half- past eight, our party being now considerably 
augmented. This practice, I find, is frequent ; the pay of 
the carriers is only a real a day, but I determined to pay 
double. Our baggage had been sent on an hour before our 
departure, and we overtook it about six miles beyond Tu- 
cuyo. 

Our route lay in the direction up the right bank of the 
river, about two miles above the town, where we forded : 
the water, though broad, was not very deep ; and its bed 
composed of small pebbles. The cordelier, at the loot of 
which we were crossing, was clothed with stupendous fo- 
rests, from the left margin of the river to the summits ; we 
entered the woods immediately upon crossing, and discover- 
ed, that, although the range of the cordelier from Merida 
to the north of Tucuyo appeared unbroken, it was here cut 
through to the very base, and seemed to be the ends or be« 
ginnings of several mountains which rose out of a plain ; 
the opening led into a vast area, in which the mountains 
seemed to terminate, in order to unite their mountain floods 
with the Tucuyo ; we passed several of these streams, and 
followed a path lying westward, which led up the side of a 
small ridge, and along this side to the south of west, about 
thirty feet above the common plain. The route was very 
much broken ; but the poor fellows, who carried me, were 
in perfect good humour and contentment ; though the sun 
was bright and its rays warm, the position of our line of 
march, and the forest trees on our left, gave a comfortable 
shade. The country here presented a mixture of lofty fo- 
rests, rocky ravines, streams gurgling and nestling into each 
other's beds ; and banks, a little elevated at intervening points, 
tinted with flowers amidst carpets of velvet verdure. To me 
the passage was as pleasant as could be desired, as I had all 
the comfort and ease of a couch, and was exempt from fa- 
tigue ; while I had, without any personal care to require 



^38 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

my attention, a full opportunity to view the landscape which 
appeared to glide by me ; the capricious forms and direc- 
tions of the mountains and the valleys, the new plants and 
flowers, and the innumerable tribes of birds, their painted 
plumage, and their occasional mingled roar of song : but I 
must confess, that the same kind of feelings which I expe- 
rienced on being first carried in a palankin on the shoulders 
of men, in Hindustan, were revived here. The palankin is 
a well-balanced, light, and a manageable carriage. It is so 
contrived as to divide its weight upon the shoulders of four 
men, who can relieve each other without altering the celerity 
of their pace, over a surface uniformly flat for many hundred 
miles, iind in which a stone as large as a grain of gunpow- 
der is never found. The case here was in every respect more 
laborious to the bearers — there was no made toad, two men 
could not travel abreast upon the track, and the whole sur- 
face was composed of angular rocks, of fragments of angular 
stone, without even a rounded pebble in the brook beneath. 
The burden too was more cumbrous, because the hammock 
being suspended at length, hung so low that in some passages 
there was a contact with the projecting rocks beneath. Under 
these considerations, whenever a favourable shade presented 
itself, we halted, and if the brook was near, we had some re- 
freshment. At length, we descended, forded a large stream, 
and crossed the broad and broken valley ; ascending the side 
of a long sloping bank, widening to a plain covered with 
a verdant sod, until we reached the village of Humano 
caro Baxo about three o'clock, having travelled more tlian 
twenty-seven miles. 

The alcalde of this place reported himself absent ; but the 
sergeant, who had several times marched this route, knew him, 
found him, and told him he knew him. Having been ra- 
ther rested than fatigued by the journey of the day, I 
sought for some of the usual beverage of the country for the 
peons, and they all had as much as they wished for ; the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 239 

baggage being placed in a convenient spot, the mules were 
allowed to roil and feed on the plain. The alcaide would 
not budge for the sergeant, who desired quarters and fo- 
rage for payment. I waited on him, and in the most re- 
spectful but firm manner requested accommodations. The 
suUenness and superciliousness of this man of brief authori- 
ty, was to me unaccountable. I called the peons together, 
in order to make payment — the usual hire of the country is a 
real — to be sure, the sum in our country is trivial, but be- 
fore I knew what the fare was, I made it known to them, 
that I should pay them double the usual fare. Whether it 
was a presumption upon this voluntary promise, either that 
I must be very silly or very rich, as payment of any kind, in 
former times, was so rare an occurrence, and stripes were 
oftener given than reals, it seems that the alcalde calculated 
upon my weakness, and his remoteness from responsibility ; 
hcAvouId neither give an answer, nor, as was his established 
duty, provide accommodations, though many houses were 
tenantless, and at his command ; the public law and custom 
requires of him, if fuel or food be required, to cause it to be 
furnished at a reasonable price. Night being close at hand, 
I directed the sergeant to seek the best vacant house, which 
he soon found and soon occupied it ; as we carried all the 
furniture we required about us, we were soon fixed, and our 
hammocks up ; we then called upon the alcalde, tendering 
silver in payment, for fuel, milk, and eggs, and for bread if 
any was to be purchased. The alcalde said nothing, did 
nothing, and, in fact gave no orders in our presence — but 
as our guide knew the man, and how to ingratiate himself 
with the inhabitants, he soon found that fuel, eggs, poultry, 
and bread were abundant, and he purchased accordingly ; 
but the alcalde had signified his displeasure to any one who 
would dare to sell any. The sergeant, therefore, insisted on 
paying first the price asked, and then taking whatever we requi- 
red. We thus got guarapa for the peons, bread, cake cho- 



240 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

colate, some manteca or oil for stews— butter we had not 
seen since we left Susacon, and the cook was at length en- 
abied to go to work ; milk was obtained by Vincent, at some 
distance; and the peons were called upon to receive their 
pay. They had some unexplained difference among them- 
selves, and one of them came forward to receive for the 
whole. Some discontent was visible among the others, 
and I signified, that I would pay each individual into his 
own hand ; this was signified to them all by the sergeant ; a 
considerable number exulted in this, and the spokesman 
menaced them : and turning to me, with a staif in his hand, 
signified that the alcalde had told them not to take the fare 
I offered, nor less than four times the common fare ; I cal- 
led for the alcalde, who acknowledged the declaration ; I was 
determined to resist this design of robbery, countenanced 
by a magistrate; I prepared myself to resist the insolence of 
this unworthy man, and to repel any outrage, such as the 
menaces of a part of the peons unreservedly held forth. I 
accordingly discharged my pistols in the air, and reloaded 
them with ball and buck-shot in their presence, and caused 
our people to be at hand armed ; then calling upon the al- 
calde, I intimated my knowledge of his character; my per- 
sonal acquaintance with the Intendant of the department, 
whom I should see in a few days, and that I should make 
his conduct known ; that I should now deposit in his hands, 
if he required it, the fare for each peon ; that it should be 
double the ordinary fare ; that it was his duty to repress 
their insolence and their menaced robbery ; and that, if any vi- 
olence should be attempted, I should feel myself compelled 
to shoot him as their abettor. The effect was electrical, he 
now talked with volubility and superabundant meanness. 
The peons were called, and paid individually by me,;and on 
returning to the quarters we occupied, the alcalde followed 
us, with two dozen of eggs, which he insisted on present- 
ing to us. I had so far recovered my strength, that I deter- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S4l 

mined to move early — we had an abundant repast, and, as 
usual in this fine climate, a balmy repose. 

This statement, given merely to show the difficulties in 
which a stranger is placed, when he comes in contact with 
a man of a vicious temper ; the necessity of appearing able 
and prepared to repel outrage, how necessary it is to pursue 
a decisive conduct without violating decorum in w^ord br 
action. On more occasions than this I found it to be not 
only necessary, but the only certain mode of repelling inso- 
lence and wantonness from such people. 

This village stands in a position peculiarly wild and re- 
markable; in crossing the valley to approach it, the Sierra 
appeared within a few yards of it, but as we neared the 
town, the perpendicular face of the rock, lofty, naked, and 
unbroken, seemed so close as to be within stone-throw, and 
so elevated as to appear rather to incline towards us than 
from us ; its direction was north and south ; we, in the 
course of the next day's journey, traversed the prolongation 
of this ridge on the opposite side from south to north, where 
the serrated rocks seen from Humano caro Baxo now appear- 
ed like the debris of a vast artificial rampart piled against 
the wall on the exterior or east side. 

On Saturday the 14th December, at six o'clock, and re- 
descending to the valley by which we had entered, we took 
a southern direction for about two miles, where this vast 
wall was cut across by a valley running from east to west, 
and between the interval of which it formed one side. Be- 
low the winding ridges on the opposite range, several streams 
flowed into a common channel, and numerous paths diverged 
from this place to three of the cardinal points.- Our path lay 
the nearest to the ridge of Humano caro Baxo^ and our pas- 
sage was to the north-west, an ascent for more than three 
miles over immense rocks, where some industry had been 
exercised in constructing rude timber bridges, leading from 
rock to rock, and over deep fissures which the mountain 

31 



242 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

flood had not dug a passage, our ascent was tedious, diffi- 
cult, dangerous, and vexatious ; repeated halts to rest the 
inappreciably patient and persevering mules, enabled us to 
contemplate the enormous masses of rock which formed 
the slope of that Sierra, whose south-east side appeared like 
a wall springing from a green pasture perpendicular to the 
heavens. 

We at length overcame this rocky ascent, and entered 
upon the side of a mountain sloping indeed, but very steep, 
and covered with beautiful verdure. We passed a hato^ 
where horses and mules were bred and collected, and saw 
some very fine cattle ; but our ascent became so steep that 
the march could be continued only by a track, like a shelf 
round the mountain, some miles below its summit, but still 
so high at the pebbled shelf upon which we rode in single 
file, that cattle beneath us were distinguishable by the naked 
eye only like little flies upon a carpet, and lofty clumps of 
forest trees were diminished into bouquettes. 

This was the worst specimen of steep and lofty passages, 
on paths not broader than a quarto volume, wc had yet met, 
and, though wrought originally by art into level planes, now, 
by the attrition and descent of the soil from the inward side, 
formed a very decided inclination to the abyss. To ascend 
and attempt to travel such a path, even on foot, at home, 
would be deemed dangerously wanton, and full of positive 
hazard ; the head is apt to ring and the eyes become dizzy 
in looking down from heights not a third of the elevation 
we now travelled upon without hesitation, though not with- 
out apprehension. But, while examining the question how 
we should pass, such precipices, we already, without hesita- 
tion, or any effect upon our heads or eyes, had advanced 
considerably ; and I could not resolve it by any other rea- 
soning, than the confidence which is gradually acquired in 
the safety, firmness, and sagacity of the mule, which treads 
upon the roughest cliffs with as much firmness, and more 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 243 

prudence than the goat. The horse is sometimes trained to 
equal sureness of foot in the Andes ; but it is only where 
herding, or habitually associated with mules, that this stea- 
diness is acquired ; the riding horse is accustomed not to 
seek or select its own path, the hand of the rider directs him; 
and the rider is not always as wise as the mule he rides. 
The mule is injured, nay, rendered useless by being constant- 
ly governed by the bit ; the safest course in riding the mule is 
to hold a free or loose rein, and if the mule requires to be ex- 
cited, it is effected by the spur, and not by feeling his mouth. 
It is the rule of prudence therefore to do no more than give 
the direction with the hand, and the mule will not only 
choose the best but the safest path. When we had gained 
a broader path, and once more found forests and sweet 
streams of water, we resolved to bivouac and dine ; we ac- 
cordingly selected a shady spot, contiguous to a limpid 
mountain stream, hung up our hammocks in the shade, and 
having provided some wine, as we uniformly did wherever 
any was to be purchased, we had laid in at Tucuyo sufficient 
to serve to the close of this day. We dined, and had a plea- 
sant nap. 

We were mounted at three o'clock. This proved to be 
the most unpleasant evening which we had yet experienced. 
Some rain had fallen to the west and north, and the road 
passing through deep forests of lofty trees, the product of a 
very rich soil and a warm temperature, the path lay over a 
black soapy loam ; the softness of the soil, and the hollow- 
ness of the path had produced sloughs and mule -ladders., for 
I know no other expression by which to designate them. 
The mule uniformly steps in the space where the mule pre- 
ceding him had left the trace of his hoof; there the mud ac- 
cumulates and becomes doughy and tenacious, the mule 
still prefers the open space, where a trace of a step is per- 
ceptible, to attempting a new step, or to step on ground ap- 
parently more firm ; thus successive mules always treading 



244 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

in the same precise spot, the ground appears like a ladder, 
in which lines of earth cross the way, and rising between 
the spaces, which form a puddle more or less deep and 
difficult, as the weather is wet or dry. The ascent through 
this wilderness was, in this particular way, both dangerous 
and unpleasant ; Richard and myself have been at different 
times dismounted, or found it prudent to dismount, as the 
mules often found it difficult to extricate their legs from the 
slough, those cross lines of earth which give the resemblance 
of a ladder being wholly insecure, if by accident a mule 
treads upon one, the effect is to sink deeper in the intervening 
spaces. 

I We had a slight shower as we ascended half a mile 
from our bivouac, and had " cloaked aW for the reception 
of the showers which the clouds appeared ready to pour 
upon us ; the slippery soil would not admit of moving in 
more than Indian file ; and our train of ten mules made the 
march slow and tedious. The baggage mules were more 
feeble than our own, and, as we were eager to reach our 
place of rest, we pushed on with the sergeant in advance, 
leaving the two servants and muleteers to bring up the bag- 
gage ; the rain soon wholly separated us ; it was not yet 
dark, but the rain was in our faces, though our oil-cloth 
cloaks had performed the service they were provided for ad- 
mirably ; we had at length to descend. Our proposed halt- 
ing place was Agua Obispos We had passed an empty, but 
spacious bungalow, which had been a Spanish post during 
the war, and were inclined to stop there, but we continued our 
way, though the rain never ceased, and it was already night, 
with even more than the darkness incident to rain. If there 
had been a path it would have been impossible to see it, and 
our sole reliance now was not to be separated, to avoid pre- 
cipices or ditches by very gradual advances, and to trust to 
the mules for a path- way guide, and to the sergeant for 
knowledge of the country. Elizabeth's black mule had 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 245 

travelled that route before, and singularly enough had pur- 
sued the right track, my mule led me in another direction, 
which, though secure from any precipice, as, upon recon- 
noitering the next morning, 1 found ; but to have pursued 
that track, would have been to go largely out of the way. 
By hailing, and renewing the engagement not to separate, I 
retraced my steps and joined my companions. The sergeant 
had disappeared altogether ; and the baggage and attendants 
were we knew not how far behind. The shadow of a dis- 
tant sierra, which seemed to cross our path in occasional 
gusts, was exposed, and its outline seen distinctly ; we found 
the mules had led us among rocks, between which rich her- 
bage and some wormwood grew up and brushed our legs ; 
and we continued to wind down through these rocky and 
shelving, but not very precipitous sides of the mountain — ■ 
when the welcome shout of the sergeant's voice advised us 
that he had found quarters ! 

Had he found a palace the information could not be more 
acceptable ; but what a house ! what a condition were we 
all in — no house was yet visible to our vision, and, were it 
broad day, there would be some difficulty to find it : our 
eyes had been affected by the rain, which beat upon us in 
front, and which our oil-cloths could not, at last, altogether 
protect us against. An oil-cloth capuchine, or capot, which 
I had provided to be attached tp my cloak, I had fortunately 
placed over my hat, and this protected my neck and shoul- 
ders. I found the sergeant leading my mule with one hand, 
and Elizabeth's with the other, and he placed me by the 
side of a rock, upon which my foot rested, and I dismounted, 
more feeble than I had suspected. We had come 40 miles, 
and had been under incessant rain four hours ; I found it 
necessary to have help to enter the hovel, in which an earth- 
en cup of oil, with a feebly lighted wick in it, now enabled 
me to " see land" for the first time. The sergeant and 
Elizabeths who were both as thoroughly drenched as I was, 



246 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

attended more to me than to themselves : we entered the 
place intended for a door, and found the whole space within 
apparently occupied by hammocks, over which hung some 
implements of war, uniform coats, swords, and leather caps, 
indicating the occupants to be military men. A female of 
the house appeared, and to her Elizabeth recommended her-- 
self ; the sergeant had only to place our mules in safety, and 
our saddles ; our blankets had been, in the warm valleys, 
imprudently transferred to the baggage, which did not, in 
fact, arrive until late in the next day, the ariero and servants 
having halted at the Spanish camp. The sergeant had 
brought my hammock, and, without ceremony, began to 
suspend it within the inmost hammock, the incumbent of 
which, assuming the tone of the parade, in a bass voice for- 
bid the sergeant from hanging up my hammock there ; 
though very feeble, the urgency required exertion, and, as- 
suming a corresponding parade tone, I ordered the sergeant 
peremptorily to fix up my hammock in that place ; whether 
my Spanish was perfectly classical or not, I will not pretend 
to say, but the sergeant replied in sailor's style, " Aye, aye\ 
Coronel^'' and in a few seconds, by crawling beneath the 
suspended cords of five hammocks, I found myself in the 
sixth of the row, with full room, and very much to my satis- 
faction — for my fatigue was excessive. The vi^ord colonel 
had the effect which the sergeant expected, my suspended 
neighbour changed the pitch of his voice to that of com- 
placency and equality, and addressed himself successively to 
me in Spanish and French. I had, in remonstrating against 
his opposition to my accommodation, signified that the 
world was not made for any one man, and that the house 
which received five lodgers in a dreary night, might very 
well accoinmodate as many more if there was room. We 
soon became so well acquainted, that he deplored my suffer- 
ing under such weather, and calling to a lieutenant, who was 
swinging along side him, obtained from his haversack a bot- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 24t 

tie o^ aguardiente — I should call it whiskey any where else, 
but if it had been champaign, it would not have been more 
welcome; he brought a gill tumbler of clear glass; mischance 
had left a gap in one side of it, but he filled it as full as it 
would hold, and presented it to me, assuring me it was equal 
to a blanket in such a night, and in such a pickle ; it was 
clear as rock crystal, and the flavour could not be disagree- 
able, as I drank it all, and thanked the giver ; it was of es- 
sential service. Richard had, with a soldier's discretion, 
said nothing, but hung up his hammock athwart at one end 
of the others, and went sedately to sleep. Elizabeth had 
been ushered into a small nook about eight feet by six, in 
which there were four other females. It was a country of 
canes, and where the cane and bamboo grow there is seldom 
any plank or squared timber. The only accommodation 
Elizabeth could find was a cold earthen floor, or literally a 
shelf of canes, which extended along the wall on one side 
of the room, four feet from the ground, and there, after ob- 
taining some food, of which the sergeant had become the 
unbidden caterer, she went to sleep, none of us being able 
to change our clothes. 

I found by our conversation that my friend, along side, 
was a colonel in command of a light corps [cazadores) ; that 
those who were along side him were officers of his regiment, 
and he was not wanting in confidential discourse ; he enqui- 
red my name, the rank I had held in the United States army, 
the names and relation of the young officer and his sister 
who accompanied me, and found that the sergeant of Grena- 
diers, in my suite, had been ordered on the service in com- 
pliment to me, as it was neither boastful nor insidious, having 
nothing to expect from him, I advised him that I had the 
honour of receiving the thanks of Congress at Cucuta ; this 
to my surprise he had heard of, and something of my his- 
tory, in which he was more correct than could have been 
thought possible, if I had not witnessed it myself. The 



^48 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

storm grew thicker at midnight, but what with fatigue and 
the aguardiente^ my first recollection was to find the light of 
a clear dawn penetrating the disarrayed wattled partition of 
earth and cane which had composed the exterior wall of 
the house, through which all the winds of heaven found free 
access ; but our hammocks hung above the wasted aper- 
tures, and though the floors were deluged, we were dry, 
and not uncomfortable under all circumstances. 

Our baggage had not arrived in the night, and the old 
colonel was the first in motion. His comrades were speed- 
ily equipt, and as our midnight conversation had made us 
known, we were now glad to see each other, after our ac- 
quaintance. They were soon mounted. The Colonel sig- 
nified that he was proceeding in advance of General Ur- 
daneta who was ordered to move in concert with the divi- 
sions of Paez and Colonel Manrique, the object contempla- 
ted to seize Morales by stratagem, or at least, expel him 
from the coast, that his corps was to be in advance, and 
procure information ; and that we should meet General 
Urdaneta on our route, which proved correct. 



249 



CHAPTER XVII. 

Baggage separated — native propensities to dancing — leave Obispos — abandoned 
habitations — not all massacred — plunder— conscription — dexterity of the mules, 
-— Carache — dreary position. — Santa Ana, negociation of Bolivar and Morillo 
here— singular appai'ent causeway on which it stands. — Treading and winnow- 
ing grain— killing of calves forbidden by policy and law of Colombia. — Lodge 
in the house where Bolivar and Morillo negoclated and slept — anecdote of. — ■ 
Unaccountable influence of the Spanish agents over the press.— The pro» 
positions of Bolivar in favour of humanity — both armies, unknown to each 
other, in a desperate situation. — Sucre's first public appearance as a confi- 
dential negociator — policy of Bolivar — recruits and reorganizes his army, and 
with surprising celerity appears at Carthagena, and prepares for its fall. — Com- 
missioners to Spain. — March— precipices — fatigue — halt at the foot of a steep 
descent. — Manners of the peasantry — cheerfulness universal. — Move off the 
road towards Truxillo. 

It was Sunday, and our baggage had not yet arrived j 
the night, though in a northern cHmate it would be deemed 
temperate, was here cool, and the want of our blankets sen- 
sibly felt. They reached Obispos at two o'clock, at that 
time the excuses of the ariero and Vincent were accepted, 
as the inclemency of the day and night taught us to think 
them reasonable ; but we found afterwards, that they had 
determined, on setting out, to stop, though not to sleep, at 
the Spanish camp ; the solution of which, and of other in- 
stances of delay, was to be found in the propensities of the 
ariero and our domestic Fince?it to dancing fandangoes. In 
fact, the ariero had sent on his servant the day before to 
that neighbourhood, and the inclemency of the weather fa- 
voured the fandango. The ariero was a man of some pro- 
perty, about thirty years old, and among his class a great 
coxcomb ; our domestic was, if possible, more vain of his 
dancing than Vestris, and we had some opportunities of wit- 
nessing his feats in that way. The Caracas folks, humble 



250 ¥ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

and elevated, and of both sexes, are distinguished above all 
others in the republic as graceful dancers ; it was therefore 
Vincent's point of honour to demonstrate the super-excel- 
lence de su propia pais, or, as he said himself, de todos los 
naturales de aquel pais, his superiority over all the natives of 
the CO y \r\\ 

On Monday, 16th of December, at seven o'clock, vi^e left 
this miserable cottage, at Agua Obispos^ or the bishop's water. 
It may have been a village or town in former times, but to 
us it was invisible, and there may have been a river or a well 
of water there, but probably it was so named from the almost 
unceasing rain that prevails there, and which gives to the 
plain and mountains that it sprinkles and surrounds, a rich 
pasture ; I could discover but two more dwellings, and of 
the same style of architecture, in the place : our route, after 
crossing the valley, lay along the ascent, parallel with its di- 
rection, two miles ; there were some fine wheat, barley, 
maize, peas, and other pulse, in pretty large patches, and an 
apparently well laboured culture ; there were numerous cat- 
tle grazing, which, from the position of the place, must be- 
long to somebody, and, if there were only a dozen owners, 
they must be all rich. There is a fact which has not been 
noticed by any of those who have travelled through Colom- 
bia, and which the scantiness of dwellings, and the richness 
of the husbandry calls to my recollection, as it has relation 
to the state of the population. We had several occasions to 
regret the desertion of towns and villages on the road, and, at 
first, concluded that their population had been all destroyed by 
the war. The destruction by war did not require any ex- 
aggeration, but we found, upon better inquiry, that this 
solitude was an abandonment always near the high roads, 
where cultivation was rich and abundant, which was account- 
ed for by some intelligent men, whom we occasionally fell 
in with on the road, or where we chanced to halt. Where 
the country was not rich in cultivation, tlie villages rem.ained 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 251 

inhabited, but only by women, aged, or infant persons. In 
the rich countries the whole population moved en masses with 
their cattle, to some of the remote valleys, out of the reach of the 
pillage or the march of armies ; and out of the reach too of the 
military conscription. These vacate^ villages and houses, add 
an only apparent decay to the actual loss by the war ; it was 
merely apparent, because the people had only moved out of 
the range of the troops, as it was a frequent complaint when 
we reasoned with persons who replied to our inquiries for 
provisions — '* No aye nada^'' we have nothing — it was a 
frequent apology that exaction was as common with the 
troops of the republic, as with the Godas. Our appearance 
with a grenadier in uniform, with his lance in front, made 
us look entirely military, and as the sergeant was the usual 
forage- master and purveyor, the people on the roads treated 
13S as they treated all military men, who too often obtained 
provisions and never paid for them. They acknowledged, 
indeed, that all the Colombian native troops took was mere 
food, or perhaps guarapa ; but the Godas not only took pro- 
visions, but any moveable they cast an eye upon, often broke 
open the chests, and abused the females, destroying also in 
wantonness what could not be useful to them. The three 
houses of Agua Obispos were more than a mile apart, and in 
that where we lodged, there were more than twenty females 
of all ages, and but two or three men advanced in years. 

It was six o'clock when we began to ascend the Sierra, and 
found the plains and verdant slopes of the ascent on both sides 
enlivened by a great number of fine horses, horn cattle, and 
some handsome and clean fleeced sheep. As Ave could not 
breakfast with satisfaction where we had slept, we halted at the 
side of a beautiful rivulet at eight o'clock, and made a sub- 
stantial breakfast. The rain had ceased, and passed to the 
summits of a distant range of the paramo, where it seemed 
to wait till we should move out of the way of shelter. The 
soil being very rich, and the earth soaked by the last week's 



20S VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

rain, the road of the Sierra became, in some places, si 
and dangerous in the abrupt descents. When I had read 
some traveller's account of the dexterity of mules in such si- 
tuations, I confess I was apprehensive of some exaggeratioUj 
but my incredulity was here perfectly cured. Elizabeth's 
black mule had travelled to and from Bogota before, and be- 
sides being a manageable and safe animal, and his load light, 
her vivacity led her to pass over such places, even before the 
sergeant, and it became to her a matter of sport ; in the de- 
scent from the Obispos Sierra, she was first in possession of 
the top of the scarp, and her mule took to the steep in a very 
remarkable manner, crossing its legs on the margin of the 
mound, and actually sliding with his haunches a little de- 
pressed, so that for fourteen or fifteen yards, she sat as erect 
and easy as on the level road, and her descent was perfectly 
quiet and secure. The vigour of my mule was unsuitable to 
this kind of adventure, and my weight added to that of the 
mule, his hoofs usually stuck in the soil, and it was neces- 
sary to descend by traversing the face of the steep zig-zag. 

We reached Carache after a not very pleasant ride over 
the Paramo de las Rosas, about three o'clock, and were glad 
to find shelter in the house of the alcalde, where we remained 
that night, and having experienced the want of wine or 
some liquor in the cold and wet we had been exposed to, 
no wine being to be had, we procured some very excellent 
aguardiente, a fine alcohol, distilled from maize, pure and 
colourless as a crystal spring, and laid it by for future exi- 
gency. The village scite appears to have been chosen in a 
whim ; the access to it, as we travelled, was through a va- 
riety of mazes, through hill and dale, glen and rivulet, 
where the mountain bases approached close, and their sides 
immensely elevated and steep ; rising a long winding track, 
covered with deep forests, we suddenly broke from the shade 
upon the flatted summit of a ridge, which seemed to have 
been constructed by art, across a valley, and to have divided 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S5S 

it into two, each of which was to be seen distinctly, for many 
miles, in splendid verdure ; it was the town of Santa Ana, 
which stands upon this ridge, on the south end, and is about 
a mile in length, the ridge itself about two miles, and the le- 
vel space about two hundred yards, the single street being 
about fifty feet broad ; the fronts of the houses are in the 
same alignment, but stand apart, and as the south end of the 
causeway approaches the Sierra, the road ascends and leads 
over a paramo where vegetation is stunted, and the surface 
has the appearance of a black turf, with some ferns, a; .d two 
species of the whortle-berry. This causeway, for it conveys 
the impression of an artificial creation, is the only thorough- 
fare, and appears like the summit of a vast bridge thrown 
over to unite two lofty mountains, which, without this com- 
munication at that place, would render the journey difficult 
and circuitous. Its inhabitants trade in mules, wheat, maize, 
barley, and other products, and transport merchandize. The 
valleys, intersected by the causeway east and west, present 
the most agreeable pictures of a country well settled and cul- 
tivation abundant. It has a much better church than towns 
of more celebrity. It being the only highway, exposed it to 
much depredation during the war, and its streets often de- 
luged with blood ; many of its inhabitants had transferred 
their families to the remote valleys, some of whom the al- 
calde said were returning. The winnowing of grain on the 
side of a steep acclivity, and the circular threshing floors, are 
seen here in the same style as in Egypt, Hindustan, Persia, 
and Boutan : a circle of stones placed on the edge, about three 
feet above the floor, has in the centre an upright post, to 
which is attached a light beam, as long as the semi-dia- 
meter of the circle ; the central end is placed by an eye or 
hole on a pin or pivot in the central post, and the horses, 
mules, or oxen, are attached to this light beam, and the 
sheafs of grain are laid within the track of the circle, around 
vvhich they move, and thus tread out the grain ; the abun- 



254 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

dance of grain is unequivocally proved by the number of 
these treading floors, and by the fact, that such establish- 
ments are kept as a business like a grist-mill, to thresh the 
grain of other persons than the owners. The cattle were so 
numerous in the north valley, that I inquired and learned 
there were several hatos^ where the rearing of cattle for sale 
was carried on to a great extent. Here I first learned that the 
Colombian government, finding that the Spaniards were de- 
termined to exterminate the cattle as well as the people, and 
produced in some parts a scarcity, had by a public regulation 
forbidden the killing of calves or cows, so that veal is not to 
be seen in Colombia, as the wisdom of the measure has ob- 
tained the spontaneous applause of the people. The alcalde 
did not fail to let us know we slept in the apartment which 
Bolivar more than once occupied, and mentioned some oc- 
currences, which circumstances did not permit me to 
note ; there were three rooms, we slept in the central. It 
was from this place that Morillo, in 1820, dated his over- 
tures to Bolivar for an armistice ; and it was in this house 
they met and slept after the preliminary forms of negociation 
were agreed upon, and in the central room they first met. 
Morillo suggested that they might occupy the northern and 
southern rooms for repose, but Bolivar preferred the central 
room, and proposed that they should hang both their ham- 
mocks in that room, that they might have the advantage of 
conversation, and it was so settled, and the best part of the 
night was spent in discourse. 

The negociations, and the armistice that followed, conclu- 
ded at Santa Ana and Truxillo, which all belong to the same 
€vent, have never been truly published ; the public journals 
of the United States at that period, strange to relate, were, 
with two or three exceptions, either generally [passive or un- 
accountably hostile to South America ; this malign temper 
was carried to such an extraordinary extent, that the Spanish 
agents had free access for the publication of the most gross 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 255 

misrepresentations, which, too, had a material and disad- 
vantageous eflfect on the rich commerce of those countries ; 
but the refutations of those calumnies were not permitted to 
be published ; or, if some one was found to publish the true 
state of things, the adverse prints maintained a systematic 
silence ; unless when there happened to be news hostile to 
the republican cause. Those celebrated negociations incur- 
red this exclusion and suppression ; nay, stories wholly 
contrary to the facts were published, and refutation not lis- 
tened to. Perhaps in the history of the world, a negociation 
so singular and novel in its character, so magnanimous and 
bold, or more consistent with humanity and wisdom, cannot 
be found. It had also features that seldom appear on the 
theatre of diplomacy ; premeditated deceit, personal artifice, 
and cunning, unfortunately belong to all diplomatic pro- 
ceedings, and this negociation is distinguished, by being 
proposed in deceit, in a premeditated determination to be 
rendered nugatory ; while on the other side, this premedita- 
ted perfidy was perfectly anticipated, and yet the negociation 
was conducted as if no such knowledge was possessed ; but 
it was made use of to estabfish generous principles of war, and 
to abrogate that barbarous system of massacre in cold blood, 
which Morillo himself had practised. 

It was known to Bolivar, that Morillo had received the 
permission which he sought, of returning to Spain upon the 
avowed hopelessness of subjugating Colombia ; he had soli- 
cited authority to precede his departure by overtures, such 
as he might deem eligible for an armistice, in order to lead 
to furth(^r negociations, and, if practicable, a reconciliation ; 
he was authorised to address Bolivar with the title of Gene- 
ral of the Colombian forces, thereby acknowledging the na- 
tional title ; and to limit the negociation, if its progress was 
not propitious, to a period that should leave Spain at liberty 
to meet a failure with reinforcements, in the event of failure. 
The proposition proceeded from Morillo, and even the forms 



^ *^f 



256 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

were suggested by him. Morillo was, in fact, in a desps= 
rate situation when he received those powers ; he must have 
been compelled to embark, if he had been pushed by a force 
of four thousand men ; and to retire under such circum- 
stances, after being denominated pacijicador^ and after so 
many outrages against humanity, was to retire under unmi- 
tigable infamy. If he could negociate even a truce, it 
would leave him an opportunity of retiring without notori- 
ous shame, and devolve upon his successor all the hazard 
and the responsibility which he wished to avoid. But what is 
most singular, is, that neither Morillo nor Bolivar was ac- 
quainted with the actual condition of the other ; each per- 
haps was engrossed by the feebleness of their own condition. 

The Colombian forces were reduced to a very low state, 
and all resources were apparently exhausted ; the corps, 
which were embodied, were very short of their complement, 
and it became necessary to divide them into detachments, 
and canton them, in order to derive from different parts of 
the country local subsistence, which they had not the means 
to draw to head-quarters ; and it was apprehended that the ar- 
my would, even thus dispersed, disband altogether. Both 
generals, in their own conception, were in a desperate situa- 
tion ; and it is in this way we must account for the ready 
acceptation of Morillo's propositions for an armistice. Mo- 
rillo thus assured an opportunity to disentangle himself from 
a war now hopeless ; Bolivar saw in it the salvation of the 
republic, of which, although he had never despaired, it had 
not been at any time, even after the evacuation of Carthagena, 
in a crisis more serious. 

The plan of Bolivar was instantly formed — circular orders 
were issued to the commanding officers of divisions and sta- 
tions — and upon their steady and exact conformity to their 
instructions, the triumph of their country depended — that 
the plan to be pursued was digested with care, and all that 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 257 

remained, was for each to act in his particular province, as 
if the fate of every thing depended upon each individual. 

The details of the negociation, the correspondence on both 
sides, the appointment of Commissioners on the part of 
each chief, to digest the propositions on which pacification 
in the most extensive sense was to be founded — were all an- 
ticipated ; a line of demarcation was to be fixed, beyond 
which troops, on either side, were not to pass, had been in 
the first instance provisionally conceded ; but upon exami- 
nation it was found, that the proposed line would put the 
Spaniards exclusively in possession of the great magazine of 
provisions, the cattle of the plains ; a new line was suggest- 
ed by Boiivar, and agreed upon ; and care was taken, pend- 
ing these transactions, to make known to the country, that 
the overture came from the Spaniards, that it was opened 
even with a virtual acknowledgment of the national inde- 
pendence, and that nothing seemed now to be necessary, 
but to present a numerous army in powerful attitude, to shew 
that, though desirous of peace, they were prepared to assert 
independence, by energy and arms ; the occasion served also 
to draw forth resources, to sustain as well as to recruit the 
army, and with adequate effect ; though a few weeks before 
it was apprehended that every resource was exhausted. As 
soon as the first effects of this new impulse were percepti- 
ble^ and with a view to disembarass the proceedings by his 
presence, Boiivar devolved upon Colonel Sucre and Colonel 
J. Breceno Mendez, the charge of attending to the negocia- 
tions, and he signified that, pending these measures, he 
would retire to the plains. By an unprecedented march, af- 
ter writing a letter at St. Christoval, the first account heard 
of Bolivar, was his appearance in his friend Montilla's camp, 
before Carthagena ; where having put in motion the afFairs of 
the siege, and, as if he had passed upon wings, he appeared 
again, near the army, at Truxillo. 

33 



*Mi5S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Morillo could not believe that Bolivar had been at Carthage- 
na : he was soon convinced,- — the place surrendered. Bolivar 
had re-organised his army, and pressed Morillo not to suffer 
the negociation to be conducted so tardily ; as the delay was 
assuring advantages to Spain, while it offered only disadvan- 
tages to Colombia ; and he made a proposition of a new cha- 
racter ; it was to fix the principles upon which war, if it 
should be unfortunately renewed, might be in future con- 
ducted ; and he stated specifically a series of propositions, 
which were to arrest massacres, assure good treatment to 
prisoners, establish cartels of exchange of prisoners, and the 
abrogation of every cruelty which called for retaliation ; as 
holding prisoners in manacles, and putting officers of high 
rank to servile labours ; every one of which inhuman mea- 
sures had been practised by Morillo himself. Morillo per- 
ceived that propositions of such a nature must come from a 
mind strong and confident ; that he could accomplish nothing 
as to the political relations ; and entered into the treaty re- 
gulating the mode of conducting war in future. 

One of the propositions of Morillo, urged by the negocia- 
tors, was that two commissioners should proceed to Spain 
with the treaties to be concluded. Bolivar at first consider- 
ed this as only a stratagem of protraction, and the termina- 
tion of the truce approaching, he considered it either a strata- 
gem for delay, or a cloud under which he was to make his 
retreat, and shift the responsibility from himself. But as 
the merely sending a mission to Spain could do no harm, 
and as, if not sent, a false pretext might be set up, at their 
meeting at Santa Ana Morillo solicited this mission as a 
favour, and Senors Echiaverra and Ravenga were appointed, 
but with absolute instructions not to enter upon any nego- 
ciation which had not for its preliminary the recognition of 
independence, in conformity with the fundamental law, 
passed at Angostura in 1819. 

The details of this transaction would form a volume, but 
the abstract here given, though incomplete, has not been pub- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 259 

lished before — as the affairs of South America have not yet 
obtained, even in the United States, the importance which 
belongs to them intrinsically, the publication of those tran- 
sactions at large will wait for a period of appreciation, when 
the affairs of South America are more rationally appreciated 
than they yet have been. 

We left Santa Ana on the 18th of December, and passed 
the rock which is celebrated as the first place of meeting be- 
tween Bolivar and Morillo ; it has nothing besides remark- 
able about it, but the positions of the outposts. We tra- 
versed up and down the tremendous and steep precipices 
which made this day's march fatiguing and disagreeable : our 
mules, for the first time, were seriously jaded by the ine- 
qualities and the laborious windings and descents over roads 
of rubble ; through deep shelving lanes overhung with drip- 
ping shrubbery, shut out from light and heat, and producing 
chilliness. As soon as we were extricated from this humid 
atmosphere, the heat on the rocky hills became unpleasant ; 
and these changes took place several times within three hours. 
We were about four miles distant from Truxillo before we 
began the descent of the mountain, at the foot of which the 
road winds off. A valley, on our left, was refreshed by a 
broad rivulet, which trembled like a silver thread below, and 
seemed almost within a stone's throw ; while we stood 
perched above the precipice in awe of the steep and tiresome 
zigzag we had yet to descend : winding over slopes of pro- 
jecting and crumbled rock, strata of red clay macerated by 
the action of the passing mules, and the previous day's rain ; 
and over which the persevering and patient mule labours 
his way with a constancy and security that is astonishing. 
In every other country the obstinacy of the mule is a sort of 
proverb ; but I saw no instance of such a character in the 
long journey I performed : and without mules it is not to be 
conceived how intercourse could be carried on over the 
frightful and desolate cliffs, ravines, and rivers of South 
America. They are, in fact, to these regions, what the ca- 



260 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

mels of northern and western Asia, and the steam-boats of 
North America are ; their companions, the muleteers, are not 
so appreciable ; generally speaking, they have retained the 
shrewdness and plausible knavery of their prototypes in 
Spain. 

At imminent peril, with the fracture of some saddle crup- 
pers and girth buckles, we reached the deepest deep of the 
valley, but so jaded, that seeing a few huts on the side of the 
ravine, with some cotton and orange trees, and cows browz- 
ing on the slopes of the brook ; and, finding that Truxillo 
was more than three miles from the main road, I resolved to 
rest an hour or two here, and accordingly defiled to the right 
instead of pursuing the left road which lay along the ascent 
of one of the rivers, which assemble in this concentration 
and debouch of a hundred valleys and ravines. The females 
were occupied in releasing the cotton from its pod, and 
clearing the brilliant glossy fleece from its seeds; others 
were twirling the distaff with the same grace and industry 
which the poet has given as one of the finest attributes of 
Penelope — our appearance must have been delightful to 
them, for in an instant the varied occupations were suspend- 
ed, and all were on their feet, their eyes distended with cu- 
riosity and their lips adorned with smiles of satisfaction ; a 
buxom damsel, without affectation or forwardness, stept for- 
ward and offered to aid Elizabeth to dismount, and another 
superseded the sergeant in the same civility to me ; the apart- 
ment, which, like the cobler's stall, served for " parlour, 
kitchen, and all," was not very large, the floor was earthen 
and not very level, but it was cleanly swept, and the walls 
were as white as if they had been cut out of the material of 
the ravines of the Barquisimeto mountains. Only one ham- 
mock could swing in this chamber, and that from the ex- 
treme angles. An hour's rest, and some good chocolate, with 
milk fresh from the cows which grazed around, put my 
animal economy in order, and enabled me to spend another 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 261 

hour in the open air, using the freedom encouraged by the 
gay temper and affability of the females, to crack a few jokes 
with the young and old, and to discover the temperament of 
their political affections. Here, as in every other place, with 
a single exception, the name of Bolivar had no rival but the 
Madre cle Dios — and the Goths or Godas were congenially 
grouped with the devil and his imps. 

At half-past two o'clock we parted with this cheerful and 
innocent people, and with many civil expressions — and turn- 
ed off from the main road, which lay in a west direction, to 
the side of the rapid current of the Motatauy along the side of 
which we travelled up south amidst plantations of cacao, su- 
gar-fields, and exuberant vegetation. The side of the stream 
consisted of irregular heaps of unequal sized stones, whose 
sharp angles had been barely rubbed off, and the river bed of 
lesser stones of the same recent forms — at four o'clock we had 
ascended much above the level of our halting-place ; the 
mountain on the left side of the river, which had been con- 
cealed by the forests, now appeared erect, and green, but 
naked of trees and somewhat broken ; the mountain on our 
left, on the right side of the river, became depressed, and de- 
scended to a gentle slope, upon which the sun cast an agree- 
able light ; our route lay across this river, which we passed 
upon a very rude bridge of the simplest structure, a few 
trees, their branches lopt, placed alternately tops and stumps, 
a quantity of brush wood tied across the timbers, and earth 
and sand beaten into the brush-wood so as to keep them 
compact, and form a very passable path on the surface. 

We reached some cottages, but the town was not yet to be 
seen, for vi^e were several feet below its lowest inclination, 
and in its suburbs ; winding round a mound and a ravine 
we reached a sloping passage, paved with coarse flat stones, 
and, led by the sergeant, who appeared as if scaling a rampart, 
we followed, and, on gaining the summit, found ourselves on 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 



el empedrado de calle, or the pavement of the main street, 
of this very celebrated, but much-misrepresented city of 
Truxillo. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

Truxlllo misrepresented— a more exact description— polite subaltern — good 
quarters — accommodations— style of domestic economy — pretty ancles and 
satin shoes — the night-cap— Pandora's box — love of being looked at — good taste 
in apparel — religious costume — topography of Truxillo — the goitre — where 
prevalent — difficult to move — our ariero useful on the road — his ideas of the 
Revolution — characteristics — no mules — dispatch the Sergeant to Betijoque, 
head-quarters General Clemente, the Intendant — receive a most friendly an- 
swer — consequences — 20th Dec. leave Truxillo — the soldier's v/idow of Gua- 
yana — follow the course of the Motatan — Savana /arg-a- Hacienda de la 
Plata — Valeria — Alcalde knavish — difficulty to obtain mules— resolve to have 
them — Spaniards expected there that night — continue our march to the Para- 
mo in a heavy rain at 3 o'clock — above the clouds, sublime prospect— sublime 
desolate aspect — Valley of Mendoza — foot of the Paramo — lodged with the 
Curate — hospitable — Catechism — Christmas eve and night — sky-rockets — 
squibs — and firing all night — a native oboe or musical tube — Christmas 
day — polite Alcalde — the sun-dial. 

I HAVE said in the last chapter that Truxillo has been 
misrepresented. Indeed, I know no place that so little cor- 
responds vi'ith the acdounts given of it, in all the books that 
I have seen, as this ancient city. I suspect it must be the 
history of its first vicissitudes, and the richness of the circum- 
jacent country which have led to the general exaggeration con- 
cerning this city and scite. The date of its first foundation 
by Garcia Paredes is 1556, but the Indians drove the set- 
tlers out in two years after. There were three more unsuc- 
cessful attempts, but the fifth, in 1570, was successful, and 
it was finally fixed in the nook which it now occupies. What 
is most remarkable as to the scite of this ancient city, that 
it is more than three miles from the ordinarv roads, and ne- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, S63 

ver could have been on the high road. Passing from the foot 
of the steep mountain where we rested, the highway leads to 
the westward along the bank of the Motatan, which issues 
from the south, through an obscure recess, on the left of the 
road, and winds off to the westward ; if we followed the 
course of the river, which is the direct route, we should have 
left Truxillo unseen ; for to go thither it is necessary to pass 
three miles to the south along the Motatan, and it is not till 
after crossing a primitive sort of a bridge or scaffold, and 
scrambling beneath some lofty forest trees, that a few huts 
are seen upon some detached knolls, which would never in- 
duce a suspicion that an ancient city was so near at hand. 
The sergeant, who was master of the Carte de pais, put spurs 
to his mule, and dashed into a ravine, so that we lost sight 
of him, till we saw him cap a pied mounting a slope of stone 
work, which resembled the slope of a covert way, to a 
rampart, where he waited for us ; we followed of course, and 
trusted to our mules for security in passing over the slippery 
flag-stones. As it was a warlike time, and this was a mili- 
tary commandancy, the serjeant led us directly to the quar- 
ters of the commandant, over a pavement that was in the 
usual style of excellence. The great man was absent, but 
a polite subaltern volunteered, seeing a lady in company, and 
conducted us to an adjacent street, where, opening a pair of 
folding gates, we rode in, and he presented to us in the cor- 
ridor an ample chamber on the main street, said, this house is 
yours, made his bow, and disappeared. 

The house was a very good one as to space and style, but 
it was not as clean as was necessary to comfort ; it belonged 
to a widow lady who was at her hacienda in the country, 
and it is the usage to afford accommodation to persons of 
respectable appearance in such vacant houses ; a poor widow 
woman, who had been accommodated by the owner in a 
rear apartment, presented herself and solicited permission to 
clean out the room, and as she had the broom in hand, and 



264 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

went to work as she spoke, it was an act mutually agree- 
able. As there was no incumbrance beside the bare walls, 
every thing was soon in order — our mules were already un- 
laden, and feeding upon sugar cane — pur baggage trunks so 
disposed as to serve for chairs and tables ; our hammocks 
hung up ; chocolate smoking and frothing to find its way 
into three or four tea-cups of different ages and nations, 
which Vincent had placed, with some fine bread, on one of 
our own white napkins ; a fricaseed chicken, with some fine 
rice, completed our ample and delicious repast, which being 
dispatched, Elizabeth, in her night-cap, placed herself on 
the vis a vis seat of the window, with her work-box and 
her embroidery, and was as busy and unconcerned as if she 
was already at home — and as it was on the main-street, 
and the only promenade of this ancient city, she could see 
as far from her window of what was going on in that street, 
as from the top of the best house in Truxillo. I believe it 
is as true of cities as of villages, especially when the city, like 
Truxillo, is not larger, nor as large as some villages, that they 
are as proverbial for gossiping, and as curious about novelties. 
The arrival of an elephant or a whale could not have affected 
$he pretty ladies of Truxillo with more curiosity, than the 
3*umour of a strange damsel, of fair complexion, and with 
cheeks as roseate as those of the Virgin of Chinchinquira, 
had arrived in Truxillo, and was actually quartered at the 
<easa of Senora Cardifia, in the Calle Grande ; the pavement, 
though very good for horses, or mules, or asses, is not ex- 
actly the best adapted for very pretty delicate feet, cased in 
satin or other silk shoes ; and moreover, where it is so 
rough, there is a necessity of keeping the hind-skirt of the 
garment from soiling where the mules have gone before 
them — what was to be done ? could it be expected that cu- 
riosity would regard a rough pavement ? and moreover the 
ladies of Truxillo had never seen a street with a ti-ottoify such 
as we have at Philadelphia, and such as they have not at Paris, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 265 

although Mollien finds fault with Bogota for that defect. 
They in fact passed on the opposite side of the street, and they 
peeped, but good manners did not permit them to peep long 
enough, and besides the night-cap was wliat has been called a 
mob-cap, which tied under the chin, and there were I know 
not how many borders, edged with a very narrow lace, and 
even the crown itself had a border where it joined the head- 
piece ; and those deep borders, which were intended to de- 
feat the wantonness of the sunbeams, now defeated the cu- 
riosity of those Senoritasy who wished to see every thing ; 
after passing up and down, first at this side, and then at 
that, eyeing the object, as if, like Miranda in the Tempest, 

They could no woman's face remember, 
Save from the glass they'd seen their own, 
Wondering at such goodly creatures, 
And the brave world that had such people in it. 

At length female curiosity surmounted all scruples — and 
a group entered the corridor, using the service of the poor 
soldier's widow, who already seemed herself one of our party ; 
they requested to be admitted, but entered upon the word. 
They had not seen me, for I was at repose, and Richard 
was chmbing the sides of the mountain which hung its steep 
sides over the street, and shut out sunshine three fourths of 
the day. 

The ladies were soon intimate ; they asked a thousand 
questions, in perfect good nature, and in perfect good nature 
they were answered ; they wished to see the cap — the night 
cap, but night was coming on, and intimations of the even- 
ing repast led them to separate, but not without invitations 
to visit their houses, and beseeching us not to leave Trux- 
illo so soon. There was indeed a succession of visiters until 
night warned them away. My daughter not expecting to 
remain, as mules had been applied for to be ready in the 

34 



266 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

morning, she had barely taken off her bonnet and riding- 
habit, and put on a hght garment, letting her cap remain. 

But they were with us in the morning — for the mules 
were not forthcoming— and now they prayed to be permitted 
to take a pattern of the cap- — Elizabeth went to her trunk to 
find one perfectly unsoiled, and it was necessary to remove 
some other articles to get at it ; this was opening Pandora's 
box ; the cap was lent that day, and before we left Truxillo 
it was the general object of female attraction. Perhaps they 
heard some passing traveller say that " a beautiful woman 
never looks so well as in her night-cap," — and they all deter- 
mined to look well — for every one had taken a pattern. But 
the trunk had revealed other curiosities — come, my sweet 
friend, said one of them — " Sehorita mia^ vamos — andar por 
las calces y tragear sus gran vestidos — vamos ^ mi Senorita 
bonita — mi amiga.^'' " Come my sweet friend, promenade 
the streets, and show your beautiful clothes, my pretty 
friend." How it was possible that a young lady should have 
handsome clothes and not walk abroad to show them, was 
beyond their conception— they saw every thing in the trunk — 
admired every thing — and if taking a pattern could procure 
them, they would have had patterns of every thing. 

The Colombian ladies, generally, when allowed to follow 
their own taste, dress to advantage ; and, although they use 
a profusion of jewellery in their hair, on their necks and fin- 
gers, in company, their method of attiring themselves and 
putting up their fine dark long hair is very graceful. Their 
familiarity is, to my taste, much to be preferred to the stiflf 
prudery which I have seen in other countries. They never 
affect coldness or reserve ; I never saw any instance of a 
want of decorum, in the very ardour of their cheerful- 
ness. The taste for dress, I have understood from some o 
them, has undergone a great change since the revolution. 
The custom, enforced by the clergy, of compelling females 
to wear a particular dress, common to all classes, is still re- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S67 

tained, and it is not unbecoming ; though it differs at Caracas 
and Valencia from Tunja and Bogota. Still the taste for 
dress is, at present, greater than the capacity to gratify it. 
The revolution has wrecked the fortunes of all parties— 
the royal adherents who are exiled, and the republicans who 
have triumphed. The sources of opulence however remain 
with the victors, and its growth, however slow, is inevitable. 
Meanwhile, those who were among the distinguished formerly, 
endeavour to keep up former appearances — and it is not no- 
ticed as a reproach, for how could misfortune, arising out of 
virtuous causes, be reproachable ; it is only noticed as the 
evidence of a ruling passion, which, being an object of inte- 
rest to the general observer, is no less so to him who looks 
round the world with a commercial eye ; as it proves that 
the market must augment progressively with public and pri- 
vate prosperity. I have known, in respectable families, where 
there were no silk stockuigs to be purchased, the females 
have so arranged it, that they should have those they could 
purchase in rotation, and the females who remained at home 
from one ball, go to the next in rotation. 

The scite of Truxillo is remarkable — imagine a bank of 
about a quarter of a mile front, facing the east, sloping ab- 
ruptly to the bank of the Motatan, which pours its gurgling 
current to the north. The southern side of the bank, is the 
foot of a steep precipitous mountain, which continues its el- 
evation of about six hundred yards, better than a quarter of 
a mile due west, where it suddenly turns and forms a nook 
of not forty feet wide ; the mountain now pursuing its 
course a point or two east of north, not quite a half mile. 
So that the west end of this valley, which is no v/here a 
quarter of a mile broad, and narrows to forty feet, and has 
for its sides the winding chain of these whimsical moun- 
tains that form the nook on which Truxillo stands. The ac- 
count given by Alcedo, of Truxillo, is marvellously errone- 
ous; and Bonny castle, though taking it all in all, as the best 



§68 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

book on South America for reference, though it abounds al- 
so with errors ; Bonnycastle has been misled by his author- 
ities. Upon Alcedo, generally, there is little dependence to 
be placed. I never read a work on geography so abundant 
in error, or so defective in relation to what it professes to 
give — correct information. 

Besides the main street, which is the only one that ex- 
tends the greater length, there is another parallel to it, on 
the south side, and part of a street on the north side ; three 
or four streets cross these, east and west. The country 
around is rich and prolific ; but whatever may have influen- 
ced the settlement of Truxillo in this nook, and its contin- 
uance as a place of importance, it is easy to discern, that a 
free government, by enlarging the power of choice, will lead 
the inhabitants to situations more eligible, and less gloomy, 
than the nook of Truxillo. 

A disease, which, though not peculiar to this part of the 
world, I mean the Goitre^ is very prevalent in this neigh- 
bourhood, though I did not see a single case in Truxillo — 
the first I saw in Colombia, was on the road from Santa Ana 
to Truxillo, where I was taught to expect to see it seizing 
upon every throat ; perhaps I saw our pretty female visitors 
with the more pleasure, as not one of them had that deform- 
ity, nor did I see a second, till I had advanced towards 
Mendoza : as far as a transient passage would enable me to 
judge, the goitre appears only in particular districts; and 
after leaving these, a considerable space is passed over be- 
fore it recurs again. I did not see it at Merida, nor 
thence to Gritja ; but the worthy curate, who came to re- 
ceive us, and conduct us to Sativa, was affected by goitre, 
which it was some time before I perceived, it was so dexter- 
ously covered by a green guard and scarf. The charming 
people of Susacon were wholly exempt from it, and I felt 
some delight in learning from Sefiora Calderon, the lovely- 
wife of the alcalde, that it was not known in their parish, 
nor for some miles around. Neither was it visible at thf 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S69^ 

beautiful town of that beautiful and kind people at Santa 
Rosa, nor is it frequent at Tunja or Bogota, though some 
instances prevail there. I know not how far the custom- 
ary dislike of salt, which prevails every where in Colom- 
bia, may have any influence, but so little is salt in use, 
that, wherever we dined with any of our friends, a salt-celler 
was laid for us only, none else using it with flesh, fish, or 
fowl. The government, disposed to find a cure for this 
unsightly disease, has promised ample rewards to those 
who may aflford remedies for its cure and prevention. 

Our domestic arrangements were such as if disposed to 
remain we should deem convenient enough, but we were 
desirous of proceeding forward. The commandant was, 
perhaps, too much occupied in mind by the Spaniards, who 
were about twenty-five miles distant, to bestow any regard 
upon us. We had endeavoured to prevail upon our ariero 
to accompany us to Merida, and then we should move the 
next morning, but as was his intention at first, he had already 
bargained for a return cargo, and we must wait the leisure of 
the higher powers. We therefore paid our cavalier, Valen- 
tine, giving him a letter acknowledging his fidelity, to Co- 
lonel Gomez who recommended him. When he found I 
had said nothing in censure of his revels and fandangoes, he 
was particularly eloquent: he had amused us very frequent- 
ly on the road with his vivacity and vanity, and unceasing 
communicativeness. This hero of mule-drivers was, in the 
main, honest in pecuniary affairs, but was rather indifferent 
to veracity when it interfered with his wishes, and he was 
apt to misrepresent distance, or to declare a place ten or 
twelve miles, more or less, remote, when a delay or a forced 
march would bring him to a neighbourhood where he could 
spend his night at a fandango ; but lying in this way may 
be considered as inseparable from the muleteer as honour 
and integrity from jockies and gamblers. From constantly 
passing on the routes between Caracas and Truxillo, which 
were to him the polar regions, he knew every body, and dipt 



^70 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

into every body's business ; he pointed out, as we passed Ha- 
ciendas, that formerly belonged to Godas, and (in an under 
voice) some Godas u^ho still remained, who, he said, el con- 
greso foolishly permitted to remain. He could tell the acts and 
deeds of all the eminent Colombians within a hundred miles 
of any part of the route, and never failed, when he had told 
his story, to refer every thing to Bolivar and el congreso 
de Celombia. He was a sturdy patriot, and explained his 
ideas of the revolution by observing, that before the revolu- 
tion there were men every where whom it was not safe to look 
at, but now a man in his station, una pmsano libre^ may talk 
freely and look at any body, as I talk and look at you, Seiior, 
por favor ; the lawyers, he said, had not the same power, 
though they still vext people too much ; and somehow, said 
he, — looking round lest he should be heard by some one in 
his mind's eye, though many leagues distant, — somehow all 
the ill-natured priests seem to have gone off with the GodaSy 
for those who remain treat us as if we were men. He was 
not bashful in relating his own exploits in two campaigns, 
nor that among the muleteers he was considered no small 
character ; he had, he said, some qualifications for his sta- 
tion in life ; at Valencia or San Carlos he was considered as 
the best dancer among the numerous circle of his acquaint- 
ance ; but that Caracanian, that Vincente, your asistiente^ 
I acknowledge, beats me hollow. When impeached of leav- 
ing our baggage exposed, and he and Vincente going off at 
night to dancing places, he pleaded guilty to going, but re- 
minded me that he bad a man-servant especially to take care 
of his ovk^n mules, and of course our biiggage. 

The absence of Valentine at night was nothing to us, but 
he carried Vincent with him, or they went together, and the 
services of the latter were sometimes wanted ; besides, we 
found him on the march frequently in a deep sleep on his 
mule, to which he had committed himself and his fortunes 
implicitly. We met no such troublesomely clever muleteer 
on the rest of our journey as our ariero Valentine, and when 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 271 

he received his money and was about to part, with a good« 
natured freedom he made an apologetic confession, that he 
had sometimes given us more displeasure than he ought, par- 
ticularly in keeping back the baggage at the Spanish camp, 
and letting us go on without our blankets to Obispos ; that he 
never travelled with any people more to his satisfaction, and 
if it were possible would like to go the whole world over with 
us. Poor Vincente was disconsolate at being separated from 
a man who had the candour to acknowledge him his superior 
at a fandango. 

The unkindness, or the more serious mental occupation of 
the commandant of Truxillo, had now detained us five days in 
this gloomy nook. The distance to Betijoque, on the lake 
of Maracaibo, where the intendant General Lino Clemente 
then was with a small force watching Morales, was only half 
a day's march. I dispatched a letter to him in the afternoon, 
and before noon the next day I had his kind answer, and a 
visit in full uniform from the commandant and his suite, who 
regretted his not knowing who I was before, and inviting 
me to dine and stay a day longer ; but that mules should be 
at my command early in the morning. Of course I had no 
other right than usage to expect any attention from the com- 
mandant, but the promptitude with which they were now 
provided, only proved how likely a mere stranger is to be 
disregarded, when an officer does not think the obligations of 
his nation equally imperative. I declined any visit. 

I had the honour of a personal acquaintance with General 
Clemente at Philadelphia, when he was the ministerial agent 
of the republic ; he gave as an apology for not coming to see 
me on my route, that he was at that moment in presence of 
Morales, who had a force double his numbers, and could do 
no more than keep him in check, and prevent his maraudings 
from being more extensive ; he advised me not to tarry a 
moment, but move forward as fast as possible, as my route 
was that which he suspected Morales meant to take. 

During our detention at Truxillo, we were not widiout 



272 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

some amusement. The poor soldier's widow, to ingratiate 
herself with my daughter, the evening of our arrival, was ve- 
ry useful to us, and very interesting. She was a native of 
Angostura, and had come all that way in prosecution of 
some claims on account of her husband, who had fallen in 
battle ; she had four children with her, and one of them 
sung in a most interesting style, and with her accompani- 
ment. Her amusing stories and her interesting songs were 
delightful, and perhaps the more so, because she appeared 
to study nothing but to contribute to our comfort and satis- 
faction. The little girl, of ten years, who sung so well, was 
constantly with us, and we had numerous specimens of their 
popular, patriotic, romantic, and amatory songs. The poor 
widow was besides an improvisatrice, and in several instances 
added a stanza to a song, complimentary to some of us. Eli- 
zabeth gave her such little articles as could be spared, for her 
girls, and a trifling present seemed to produce as much gra- 
titude as if it had been ample. Indeed, with an ardent love of 
music, I do not recollect to have had more satisfaction from 
melody and song, than from the unmeditated concerts of 
this poor, but amiable widow and her orphans. We left 
TruxiUo on the twenty-third of December, at eleven o'clock, 
and descending the steep ravine, by which we entered the 
town, we were surprised to find the poor widow on the road 
side with her children, where she had placed herself to take 
a last sight of us, and to express her gratitude and her bles- 
sings. While we descended along the rugged bank of the 
Motatan, she continued to hold up her scarf, and wave it in 
the air, until we were hidden by the winding of the valley. — 
The pain is much greater than the interest excited by the 
knowledge of such afflictions as this poor widow and her or- 
phans were exposed to by the afflictions of war : it was some 
mitigation, however, to reflect, that she was in a country 
where indigence can never famish ; where charity is so unaf- 
fected as to divest its favours of arrogance or contempt ; 
where perpetual spring saves the unfortunate from that seve- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 273 

rity of wretchedness where cold and avarice produce insen- 
sibility and hardness of heart. 

We had, in going to Truxillo, to pass about three miles 
south of the highway ; for it is so far from the road ; we 
had now returned back those three miles, and fj^'^?^^^g the 
stream of the Motatan, to the west* .^^iiore riui. ^^ ^^^ i^^q ^^,, 
tual path, as our track sometimes ;>(v'?"^d the river, passing 
through cane brakes, sugar patches, coffee plantations, and 
cacao groves. By half-past two we passed the village of 
Pampanita without halting, and entered on Savana Larga^ 
where, about five, we turned off from the road, to an adjacent 
house of some magnitude, where we resolved to sleep j we 
entered without knocking, and were in our hammocks by 
nine o'clock. It rained pretty heavy all night. We were 
on our march by seven in the morning of the 24th. This 
llanura or plain, was not a dead flat, but on the north side 
had a steep bank, of more than fifty feet descent, to the vast 
plain on that side ; on the south side, it was a broken, but 
verdant ground, with hillocks, which prevented its line of 
declination from being so visible, and clumps of trees, and 
some forest in the distance, gave it a very picturesque appear- 
ance ; the plain may be about twelve miles in length, our 
course was to the north-west, or nearly so, in its prolongation, 
and at the west extremity, the ground gave a platform more 
elevated, and ascending as it receded to the west ; the general 
breadth of this llanura^ was about four to five miles ; the 
plain to the west and north-east below, presented the ap- 
pearance of numerous plantations, and former opulence at 
least ; for every thing was then stagnant, owing to the neigh- 
bourhood of a Spanish force, double in number to the Co- 
lombians. 

We continued our way, procured some fine milk on the 
road, and descended to the lower plain, passing the Hacien- 
da de la Plata, once the property of a very opulent royalist 
planter. I had seen but few plantations which bore more 

35 



^t4« VISIT TO eOLOMIilA. 

substantial evidence of the riches of its former proprietor than 
this ; and, though going rapidly to utter ruin, it was venerable 
even in its decay. After a very pleasant ride, we reached a 
hamlet of some thirty detached houses on a plain, it was 
calleciai^aleria. We found the people, who had not yet fled, in 
a state of trep? 'O""^ ^ and the alcalde appeared to me, from 
his demeanor, as iT^§b was calculating upon the question of 
maintaining or betraying his post. He found no pleasure 
in exercising his duties, and upon our reiterated inquiries for 
mules, he gave no other answer than ahora I — ahora si f — ■ 
presently, or immediately ; but it seemed as if, when he said 
ahora, he meant not now, but never, I shewed him the 
letter received from the Intendant, and told him I should 
report his conduct ; at length I sent the sergeant to him, to 
say, that I had found numerous mules, concealed under his 
charge, at a house which was designated, that I suspected 
he intended them for the enemy ; and if, in ten minutes, he 
did not furnish me with mules, I should take and pay for 
them, and send the sergeant with a complaint to General 
Clemente, who was now only fifteen rniles distant. We had 
yet to pass a long and dreary paramo, and the summit of 
our route was, at the moment, covered with clouds mena- 
cing rain. Food and forage were not to be procured here ; 
and the alcalde appeared utterly stupified ; whenever we sought 
eggs, poultry, or any provisions, the answer was wo a?/e — or 
no aye nada, en esta casa — or simply, no aye ; nothing here, 
nothing in this house, we have nothing ; the proximity of the 
Spaniards had produced these terrors. The alcalde, appre- 
hensive of the V naces of complaint, at length permitted the 
sergeant to selc^ some horses accustomed to the Paramo, 
and after taking u hearty meal of our own provisions, pur- 
chased for lis by our poor widow at Truxillo, we deter- 
mined to proceed at three o'clock, although it was already 
raining very heavy. We prepared our cloaks and garments 
for the storii?, preferring a wet jacket to an interview with 
Morales, and proceeded towards the Paramo, over a plain al- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 275 

ready in a puddle, and before an hour we had our heads 
above the clouds ; for the earth, on which we moved, ap- 
peared like a great island, in the midst of a boundless sea. 
The air being moderately warm, we uncloaked to continue 
our ascent over a still more lofty paramo ; we passed one 
chain, and found the verdure of a more northern climate, 
and the dewberry bramble, with very fine flavoured berries ; 
but we had to ascend again a loftier path, and over a longer, 
colder, and steep paramo, of which nor words nor painting 
could convey a true picture. It was a tremendous, dreary, 
desolate track ; and when we came to descend the rude laby- 
rinth, winding in long mazes diagonally down its steep sides, 
where vegetation had disappeared, and left a wild disorder of 
rocks and stones, which if put in motion would inevitably 
plunge into the valley three or more miles down, I found rid- 
ing so fatiguing, that I dismounted, hoping to relieve myself, 
and the poor animal that carried me ; but I found very soon 
that I h£.d miscalculated the supposed preference of walk- 
ing to riding, and learned to appreciate the value of my mule, 
which, after this long journey, appeared to be no more affected 
than at our departure. A skirt of the long valley of Mendoza 
at length broke upon our sight ; we never dreamt that Men- 
doza was still five miles distant. But the descent became 
less fatiguing, and here I was attracted by the figure of the 
mountain in our front. A valley running to the east, sepa- 
rated it from the paramo on which w^e were ; the river Mo- 
tatan appeared flowing towards us for many a mile from the 
south, and beneath our feet cut the base of the opposite 
mountain, which presented a steep, absolutely perpendicular 
mound, with a handsome village on its summit ; from that 
bank, the range of paramo, of which it was the northern ter- 
mination, was seen to an immense distance. The valley ap- 
peared but narrow, seemingly not half a mile from our 
point of view, but it exceeded two miles ; the mountains 
on the west side, though running parallel with those on the 
east, were not so steep ; and they exhibited verdure and 



^76 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

many openings, that gave it a very beautiful aspect. But 1 
could not conjecture how they found access to the village, 
seen on the steep platform, which must have been half a mile 
from the river below. 

At length we reached the foot of the paramo, and saw the 
laughing valley, its limpid stream flowing gently by us, 
and a handsome platform thrown across a mill race, which 
we had to pass j the clatter of the cogs, and the ricketty 
motion of the hopper, were cheering to us, and we turned into 
the yard of the first house to rest, and refresh. We obtained 
milk, eggs, and some fine whtaten bread ; and set oft' for 
Mendoza, expecting to reach it yet before dark ; but it was 
ha!' an hour after seven before we entered the village. We 
rode up to the church as the place most likely to learn the 
residence of the alcalde. It appeared that the alcalde's resi- 
dence was three miles further south, and, as the church is 
often the last resort of adversity, we enquired for the curate. 
It w^iS Christmas eve, and a preparation of fire-works was 
makrng on the plain. A good-natured citizen, seeing us as 
strangers, went unsolicited, and apprised the curate, who 
soon appeared, and in the kindest manner led us to a large 
hail adjoining the church ; here we found some half a dozen 
boys, under charge of a coadjutor, rehearsing a colloquy or 
catechism, in which the majesty of darkness was the dispu- 
tant on one side, and what angels or saints spoke on the op- 
posite side I could not make out, but the poor devil had 
once more fallen into hands stronger than his own, and, as 
might be expected, had the worst of the argument. 

The curate, unaware that we had provisions with us, had 
ordered supper himself, of which we knew nothing till the 
two repasts entered together ; we did not neglect thanks any 
more than our appetites ; but whether he thought we were 
heretics, Jews, or atheists, which are all the same thing, he 
took care to renew the exercises, probably for the good of 
mxv souls, while we were taking care of our bodies \ the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 277 

exercises were urged now with more particular emphasis, 
whenever the " mobbled king's*' doings were touched ; we 
did not so well comprehend the exercises at the first, but 
the representative of fallen majesty appeared worse and 
worse on the repetition, and seemed now unable to make out 
his own case. I dare say the worthy curate considered him- 
self as doing a greater service to our souls than our bodies. 
The preparations for festivity and rejoicing, which we had 
seen at our entrance into Mendoza, began soon to be heard,-— 
as loud and noisy as if the devil himself were there — squibs, 
crackers, rockets, guns, and the din of bugles, some half- 
cracked, and others in utter discord, kept up a pother, that 
if there were not elsewhere examples as noisy, we should 
probably have thought it no proof of their taste for enjoy- 
ment ; however, the stock of combustible was probably 
limited ; indeed, the day's sermon and the night's colloquy 
had brimstone enough to blow up all the legions of pan- 
demoniurt:; and, by way of requiem^ midnight brought 
in stuff of another kind — the tones of lyric instruments, 
and of some instruments that were new, and which we had 
no opportunity to examine until we reached Timothes^ 
were conspicuous for their shrillness and the originality of 
the cadences ; in an adjacent room to that in which we 
were hung up, there was an instrument very much like a 
stringed-instrument of Asia ; the body was formed of a ca- 
labash of about eighteen inches diameter, with a belly or face 
of no mean execution, and well varnished ; the handle and 
finger-board at least four feet long ; the three strings were gut, 
and of the size of those common to the violoncello ; it had 
stops and frets, set by the ear; in truth it made no disagree- 
able music, and was very well adapted to accompany a 
good voice, as they performed, I could perceive — for I could 
not sleep, and therefore got up to see as well as hear — 
with as much consciousness of excellence, as Gilles on his 
inimitable violoncello, or JVillis on his Fox Humana ; and if 



^78 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

we were not as much pleased at hearing the present perfor- 
mers, as those named, it was not from any want of desire to 
please — and he must be a sorry being who could be dissatis- 
fied with efforts so earnest. 

As the night retired, before the approach of morning the 
festivity weaned, and we fell asleep, like our entertainers, 
and should probably have slept till eight or nine o'clock, 
had not the church-bells rung a peal in our ears of such 
discordant clangor, that fatigue itself could not contend 
against it — and, as it was Christmas morning, we were up 
and ready to move by six ; but the mules had not yet ar- 
rived. Chocolate was prepared, as usual, and while we were 
regahng, the alcalde presented himself in an unusual style 
for village magistrates. He was a respectable and a sensible 
man, and, as we learned, had taken the office more for pub- 
lic benefit than private advantage ; he was a planter, and, 
indignant at the abuses practised by his predecessors, had 
accepted the station to put an end to the depravity which 
had been exercised under its name. His appearance among 
the crowd of both sexes seemed to produce a degree of 
pleasure, which must have given him more delight than mil- 
lions could purchase. We were soon ready, and while our 
baggage was loading, our respects to the curate and thanks 
were communicated, and he even wished us to stay that day, 
nor was the alcalde less importunate, 

Mendoza is itself not a regularly laid-out town, but a num- 
ber of houses detached on the upper side of the valley ; nor 
is there in the range of five or six miles which it presents at 
a view any appearance of cultivation, but it is in the valleys 
adjacent, in the range upon our right as we entered, that the 
inhabitants of Mendoza carry on a rich and extensive cul- 
ture. The church, which was now rebuilding, was an indi- 
cation of the surrounding opulence ; for no pains nor money 
seem to have been spared to render it as durable as time ; 
blocks of stone, some of which were to serve instead of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 279 

arches, and to cover the side aisles like a terrace; the yet 
unshaped shafts of columns were of such magnitude as would 
serve to erect a Palmyra. The design was in a good taste, 
excepting the unnecessary thickness of the walls. Much of 
the disadvantageous appearance of Mendoza is to be attri- 
buted to causes which have been before noticed, the flight of 
whole families into the adjacent valleys to avoid the inso- 
lence, the violence, and the outrages of the enemy on the 
highways through which they marched. The fine streams 
which irrigate this naturally beautiful and luxuriant valley, 
will most probably recal many who had emigrated in conse- 
quence of the war, and certainly new settlers could not iix 
upon a position more favourable, where intercourse with the 
ocean was not desired. 

The curate, who was, notwithstanding his free use of brim- 
stone, and his hedevilmejit of the hero of Milton, which by 
the bye w^as intended for the auditory this day, and our hear- 
ings only rehearsals, — the worthy curate was urbane, cordial, 
and disinterested. He had pretensions to learning, as his li- 
brary was stocked with the canon laws, the laws of the In- 
dies, Thomas Aquinas, and the lives of more than a thousand 
saints ; he knew also how to make dials, of which we had the 
demonstration before our eyes ; for, whoever rode up to the 
church front, hitched his horse or mule to a hook in an up- 
right post, on each of three of the four faces of which there 
were pasted a dial, the lines and hours in very handsome pen- 
manship, and as they appeared to have stood some time, and 
were not injured by weather, served as a good evidence of 
the mildness of the climate. As an indicator of the hours, it 
no doubt would have been correct, had not the post been 
used to hitch the horses, for, while I stood examining it, a 
horse that was somewhat mulish, had drawn the post two or 
three degrees out of a perpendicular. 



280 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Alcalde of Mendoza— much beloved.— Move at seven o'clock Christmas day 
—meet the Motatan river again. — The Momboy river — Dark night — for- 
tunate escape — phenomena of steep vertical banks of earth. — River of Ti- 
moihes — boundary of Truxillo and Merida — enter Timothes at midnight 
—alcalde abroad carousing — look to the church, and take quarters in the 
curate's parlour— who is from home — curate surprised by a lady's bonnet in 
the morning — a worthy man — well informed — much beloved — hospitable — his 
attentions. — Situation of Timothes — the festivity — mode of celebration.— 
Mules at four o'clock — reach Chacapo at seven o'clock — cold night uncom- 
fortable — striking change in apparel. — Erica, or heath.— Humboldt says none 
in America, found it of a fine species. — Drummond, and other botanists, same 
mistake. — Muchachees — numerous crosses. — Virgin of Chinchinquira. — Appa- 
rel changes. — Intelligence — hospitality and kindness of a young alcalde. 

The politeness of the alcalde, at Mendoza, was exem- 
plary and gratifying. He was a plain, unaffected, country 
farmer, whose good sense was manifest in his deportment, as 
well as his discourse. It was very pleasing to perceive with 
how much satisfaction he was received and seen by the in- 
habitants, aud how solicitous he was to avoid the idea of 
presuming any thing upon his office. He accompanied us 
some miles, and wished us to visit his plantation, which he 
pointed out not very distant. 

Every thing being ready, we moved at seven o'clock, and 
again found the Motatan, which we had left on our right at 
Savana Larga, notwithstanding the vast paramo we had 
placed between us and it, and here wt kept it company for 
about ten miles ; and, in a subsequent stage, found it again 
entering into the Capitanejo. We passed La Puerta, and 
reached the foot of La Cuesta, a very steep ascent, and 
were involved in a very dense and offensive mist, which 
continued a great way down the steep sides of the paramo, 
of which we gained the bottom at five o'clock, and halted to 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 281 

rake some refreshment of bread, cheese, and guarapa^ there 
being no milk to be had ; we continued our journey at six 
o'clock, the climate fine and t!ie country beautiful ; till we 
entered the broad bed of the Momboy, forming, at this sea- 
son, when its waters are lowest, a violent torrent. Our bag- 
gage had not yet overtaken us. The bed of this river appears 
in many places two miles wide, but narrows in various 
places, and is not constant to one shore ; so that when the 
channel winds among its large rounded rocks towards the 
right side, on which the rock lies, the traveller is com- 
pelled to ascend the steep banks, and follow a devious and 
ever changing way, until, by the capricious transition of the 
torrent to the opposite side, the margin of the river bed be- 
comes the most eligible path. Night had encroached upon 
us, from the difficulty of moving in those wilds, and as, in 
situations like this, our practice was to follow the sergeant in 
Indian file, one of the servants, Vincent, remaining with the 
baggage, and Pedro bringing up our rear : we had turned 
aside from a winding of the torrent, and ascended a path 
which had been trodden for many years ; the serjeant led, 
and we were slowly following, in succession, on the margin 
of a perpendicular bank of earth, more than 250 feet ele- 
vated above the bed of the river ; when the sergeant exclaim- 
ed, in an undertone, " Colonel! Halt !" I pulled up, and 
•gave the word to Elizabeth, who was next me, to halt also. 
The position in which the sergeant was placed was tremens 
dous, the continuance of the path, beyond where he stood, 
was totally carried away, and another step would have pre- 
cipitated him over the frightful chasm ; with great presence 
of mind he gently brought his mule back by the rein, and in 
a cheerful tone, halloed to Lieutenant Bachc, " Come, lieu- 
tenant, you must retreat, come to the right about:" we 
came about, and moved to the upper side of the hill, where 
we called a council of war, and congratulated the sergeant 
on his presence of mind and fortunate escape. 



S82 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The Momboy is subject to sudden overflowings; and its 
steep sides prove that the volume of its flood must be ex- 
traordinary ; the elevation and magnitude of the paramos, 
whose ravines contribute to its flood, account for the waters 
supplied, as well as the sudden decrease of its current, with 
the serenity of the atmosphere on these summits. This 
river, and what belongs to this, is also a properly of the 
numerous rivers of great magnitude, south of the Coxede. 
The steep bank of the platform of Barquisimeto, though 
steep, is not a perpendicular bank, its sides have a sloping 
buttress of rocks and earth, which the short distance between 
its sources and the front of B irquisimeto, does not supply 
such abundant contributions as the paramos of Santa Rosa, 
among which the sierra of Truxillo are inferior ranges. In 
the Motatan, the Momboy, and the Chama, the beds are 
frequently two or three miles broad, covered with rounded 
stones from six inches to sixty in diameter ; and in the dry 
season the stream is divided into several dispersed channels, 
while, in the rainy season, the whole breadth is covered with 
a rapid and deep torrent, sometimes approaching, and at 
other points winding, at a distance, round the promontories 
and headlands, which its own violent current has been form- 
ing for countless ages. What is most extraordinary, is the 
vertical steeps which those banks present on the river sides. 
They appear, in some instances, an uniform mass of grey 
earth, and I have sometimes thought that their appearance, 
and the strait steepness of those banks, suggested the adop- 
tion oi pita for the w^alls of houses. Some of those banks, 
as the Momboy, present walls or fronts sixty to two hundred 
feet high, without any verdure, nor even a pendant or droop- 
ing plant. Others present a wall as elevated, which is stud- 
ded with rounded stones, of from a tenth of an inch to four 
or five inches diameter, generally kidney-shaped, or flat egg- 
shapes ; these naked perpendicular fronts show no fissure, 
no crumbling or decay, such as banks of earth would show 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 283 

m climates where the expansive power of cold, in the form 
of frost and snow, burst asunder the earth, in which mois- 
ture has been retained ; here the agency of heat carries off in 
exhalation the moisture of those natural walls, without dis- 
turbing the atoms of which they are composed. 

It was over a steep bank of this description, where the ordi- 
nary path had led for time immemorial, we learned, after our 
fortunate escape, that the Momboy had experienced an un- 
usual flood the preceding spring, and that, by some change in 
the materials of its bed, a sort of mound of rocks had given 
a direction to the flood against this promontory, and that it 
had fallen but a few days before, but without doing any in- 
jury. Had w^e rode horses instead of mules, it is questiona- 
ble whether we should have escaped. We accordingly turned 
and retraced our way to the point from which we had mount- 
ed to the bank, and the sergeant finding the track of other 
mules in a place where a stranger would not think of looking 
for them, or when seen might not know them, we ascended 
in another diiection, and gained the road a mile beyond the 
sunken bank. We now travelled by the left bank in sight 
of the turbulent roar of the Timothes. It was about eleven 
o'clock when we entered the village of the same name ; the 
villagers on the banks of the Timothes w^ere as boisterous as 
its stream. This river separates the jurisdiction of Truxillo 
from Merida. The festivity of the night had left a few strag- 
glers, from whom we learned the position of the alcalde's 
house, but he was at a neighbouring village at a ball, and 
his wife protested loudly against the admission of any man. 
We endeavoured to quiet her, by assuring her it was a lady 
who wished her civility, and desired to know where she 
would advise us to look for quarters; but her answer was 
that we should not come in, and so we moved about in search 
of a church, which we found in one angle of the plaza, and 
were not mistaken in finding the comfortable residence of the 
curate along side it. The trampling of our mules brought a 



284* VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

"vvell conditioned Indian, in a state between laughing and 
sleeping to the gate, which he opened and we entered without 
questions on either side. The spacious room on the front we 
immediately occupied, and some female servants finding a 
lady was in company, frankly offered their services. It was 
Christmas day, and, since our bread and milk at the foot of 
La Cuesta, we had neither eaten nor drank ; but the choco- 
late pot was soon in preparation both by Pedro and the dam- 
sels of the domicil, and it was brought in while our ham- 
mocks were preparing ; our mules were placed in the corals 
and the Indian, who was now broad awake, brought molocha^ 
that is, young corn- stalks. The curate was at the frolic in 
the adjacent village, and when he came home found his par- 
lour occupied by strangers, and his handsome table covered 
with blue cloth, occupied by a lady's bonnet in gay ribbons 
and a shawl. Nobody could tell who we were, whence we 
came, or where we were going ; and though I heard the in- 
quiries, I was too much in want of sleep to go to confession 
so early in the morning. 

The curate was, nevertheless, up with the dawn to cele- 
brate his official duties ; he had ordered an excellent break- 
fast, though he had not seen one of us ; our cocinero had 
previously been prepared, by the activity of the sergeant, 
with poultry and eggs purchased in the village, and we had 
taken down our hammocks and were at high- breakfast when 
the curate entered, and gave us a most cheerful welcome ; 
regretting when he saw tliat the breakfast he had ordered for 
us was not served as he intended ; Elizabeth and I renewed 
the contest with the chocolate, and some delicious lemonade, 
with cinnamon and rose-water, which was handed, to my 
surprise, with the wishes of the season. We mentioned our 
want of mules, he said he would do his best, but was appre- 
hensive we sliould be disappointed of mules on that day, as 
every one was engaged in festivity. Some excellent fruit, 
which the festivity had brought to Timothes for other per- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 2S5 

sons, came in time to enable the good priest to afford a tes- 
timony of his hospitality and politeness ; and when we had 
satisfied ourselves, he said he would keep the remainder for 
us lest none should be procurable elsewhere. He apolo- 
gized for leaving us, as this day was one of the three nation- 
al festivals, he must recommend us to the charge of his house, 
and to call upon the domestics for u'hatever we should need ; 
as our habits were disciplined by this time to our situa- 
tion, good appetites and abundance of fine fruit made mat- 
ters not so disagreeable. 

This amiable man placed the key in the handsome book- 
case, and invited us to use his library, which, though not 
very ample, contained many books which I did not expect 
to find in that Indian village ; for, besides some of divinity, 
on abstract theology, his historical and classical stock were 
the most numerous, besides several mathematical works. 

The house being on the open square, every thing that 
passed there was visible ; and as the three festivals of Christ- 
mas, St. Stephen, and St. John, were also the festivals oi In- 
dependence ; the 26th, to union and the constitution ; and the 
27th, to victory and the memory of those who had fallen in 
defence of liberty ; the church was decorated with garlands 
and bouquettes, and branches of palm and laurel. The 
plaza had no fence, but houses on three faces of the square, 
the other, being in front of the church, had a light bamboo 
fence to mark the square. The roll of the tambour was 
heard at a distance early, and a native instrument of the 
hautboy species, upon which a melancholy cadence was 
heard, during the day, without much intermission ; but with 
frequent pauses, and no connected passages. The tam- 
bours were also aboriginal, they were in fact small kettle- 
drums in shape and tone ; and there were several of them 
of unequal tones, exactly like those in use throughout 
Hindustan ; these instruments were all performed upon by 
aborigines; indeed the society appeared to derive much 



286 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

more satisfaction from their instrumental music than wc 
did. The engagements of the curate, he told us, must 
deprive him of the satisfaction of our company; he had 
his wife to attend^ he said, jocosely pointing to the church, 
and he must render her the morning honours, and he ac- 
cordingly proceeded to the celebration of mass; but he 
kindly interfered with the alcalde, at our desire, to provide 
mules, which perhaps no other man in Timothes could have 
accomplished but himself, as it carried the mule-drivers 
from the festivity. On the twenty-fifth we understood the 
festivity was all within the qhurch ; after mass it was this 
day all on the outside, and we, unable to march, were dis- 
posed to see what was passing. The sides of the square 
were occupied by nine o'clock, and parties of horsemen 
were scouring the suburbs in all directions ; about eleven 
the whole cavalcade entered the square, and placed them- 
selves in a single rank on the side of the square opposite to 
us, facing inward ; several standards of different colours 
were carried, and the worthy curate was seen along with 
the alcalde preparing for the tournament ; for so I name it, 
knowing no other term more expressive. The whole corps 
of cavaliers now divided into two, at the head of one was 
the curate, the other was led by the alcalde, a rough, hardy, 
soldier-like man of sixty, who managed a spirited horse with 
admirable address. The exercises continued till one o'clock, 
but they were merely repetitions of two manoeuvres — the 
leaders led their divisions in Indian file alon^ the faces of 
the square, the first that reached an angle wheeled rapidly 
off on the line formed, not by the side, but the oblique or 
extreme angle of the square ; the leader of the second exe- 
cuted the same evolution on the opposite extreme, so that 
each in passing crossed the line of march of the other, and 
the point of emulation appeared to be, who should most 
promptly execute the manoeuvre, and, avoiding the side of 
the square, project himself in an opposite direction to that 
^vhich the other corps had taken. The speed at which they 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 287 

rode, must have been fatal to any two riders who should come 
in contact ; but no accident occurred, nor did the danger ap- 
pear so great, when the expertness ot" the riders became man- 
ifest. The tambours and the Indian pipe were in full din 
during the whole exercise — and their constancy in perform- 
ance was, to me, as remarkable as the discord appeared un- 
meaning. 

We dined about two o'clock, and our mules arriving we 
were on our route a quarter before four, and reached an ob- 
scure place called Chacapo, at seven o'clock at night, a 
league distant from La Venta. The descent from the 
mountain path was troublesome and dangerous ; and the 
presence of mind of our Vincente was displayed here with 
great effect ; his mule, while ambling along the verge of a 
precipice skirted with brush-wood, made a sudden trip, 
and went over ; Vincente had presence of mind to jump 
off, and hold fast by the bridle, which, being of stout cow- 
hide, he Iteld firm till the mule rolled and recovered his leet ; 
he was dragged up without injury, and Vincent mount- 
ed ; and, to shew he was not afraid, dashed down a steep 
that was nearly as formidable. The height we had ascend- 
ed, in the course of the day, was indicated by the severe 
cold of the night ; our place of shelter was, however, small 
and close, and we passed a rather uncomfortable night. 

On the twenty-seventh we moved by seven o'clock for 
Muchachees, leaving the more circuitous route by La Venta 
to our left, and ascended the second mountain at eight 
o'clock, and the first paramo at one — not a house, not a ves- 
tige of human labour or human existence was to be seen 
beyond our own company — the cold was smarting, and we 
drew for heat upon our blankets, wearing them like the 
panchos or roanas of Chile, or those square robes with a 
hole in the centre, througli which the head is thrust. As we 
ascended, I marked several plants usually found in northern 
regions. The vaccinium or whortleberry displayed its purple 
fruit, and myrtle-shaped foliage. I had been informed that 



288 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Humboldt had, in some of his valuable works, alleged, that 
the family of the Erica, or heath, of which there are about 
three hundred species in Africa, was no where to be found 
in America ; I have sought for the allegation in such of 
his works as were to be found in Philadelphia, but, strange 
to say, there is no complete copy of his works in the city 
library, nor in that of the Philosophical Society ; but I have 
found, the allegation in two recent works, and possibly upon 
Humboldt's authority. An anonymous work, entitled Con- 
versations on Botany, published by Longman and Co. Lon- 
don, 1823, says — "the eighth class, Octandria, contains a 
very numerous and beautiful genus, that of heaths. Erica, 
which is confined entirely to Europe and the southern parts 
of Africa. It is remarkable, that no species of this genus 
has been discovered in New Holland, Asia, or the continent 
of America ; nor are any found between the tropics,'* 

" First Steps to Botany ; by Dr. Drummond," published 
in the same year by the same publishers, says, p. 278, " It 
has been already stated, that no species of heath (Erica) 
has been hitherto discovered in the new world." 

But both these writers (if they be not from the same au- 
thor-) are mistaken. I am well acquainted with heath, and 
have frequently slept on a bed of it with great satisfaction, 
and could not be mistaken. I have not seen it in North 
America nor in Asia, though I have been informed by Cap- 
tain Turner, that it is abundant in Bootan, and, if I mistake 
not, the fact is stated by some other writer, as found on the 
lower regions of the Himalaya ; but I can speak from per- 
sonal knowledge, as to its natural existence in Colombia, 
and of course within the tropics. Hounslow heatli and 
others are named from the predominacy of this plant, and 
of several species ; it is also called ling in some parts of Eng- 
land ; in Scotland, hether ; in Ireland, brosnach; and it is the 
hruytre of France. In passing the paramo of Muchachees, 
not at that moment thinking of the subject, I was attracted 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. ^S9 

with a fragrance that was very familiar to my senses, but 
which I could not designate, until, led by the perfume, I dis- 
covered the minute purple-tufted flower ; but was much 
surprised to find, instead of a plant usually of two to three 
feeu — a tree ; and, having a pocket rule, I dismounted, and 
found the stem 4^^^ inches diameter at three feet from the 
ground, and the height of the plant by estimation about ten 
or eleven feet. The plant, not like those of Devonshire or 
the Cape of Good Hope, of many limbs issuing from one 
root, with iil-shaped branches ; the tree was a single stem ; 
but the bark had the same external colour and interlaced 
figure, as the plant of Europe and Africa, which in relation 
to this are dwarfs. I found also another of the genus with 
yellow flowers^ but not of the same stature, in every other 
respect the figure and limbs the same, and a new and deli- 
cate perfume like roses blendid with jessamine. I found 
the rosemary wild on this paramo, but of less fragrance than 
that which is cultivated ; and wild balm with the same in- 
feriority of scent. Many varieties of the brambles which 
bear dew- berries and black- berries are found in the middle 
regions of this cold paramo, and a few that bear no fruit on 
higher elevations ; and in the warmer region on the platform 
of Merida, I have seen the black- berry bramble bearing 
fruit of a fine rich flavour. 

It was in passing this paramo, that we reached a position, 
of which we had heard some dismal stories ; such as the 
perishing of a Spanish force of two thousand men by cold; 
and the frequent death of individuals, who had dared the in- 
clemency of this hospitable region. The point was designa- 
ted, by our alarmists, as exhibiting many hundred figures of 
the cross, of miniature dimensions, fo 'med of every sort of 
wood or chip, that the piety of the passenger deemed suffi- 
cient to plant, while he or she prayed for the souls of those 
who perished there. We found the crosses more numerous, 
perhaps, than we were previously advised ; the mound was 

37 



290 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

such as nature had made it, and the absence of every thing that 
would sanction such a mortaUty, as that of two thousand men 
so short a time before, who could at least travel ten or twelve 
miles backward or forward, induced me to treat this affair as 
an exaggeration; some unfortunate individual, otherwise 
disabled, might have perished there j and it was not more 
than a mile from the scene of a sharp action, in which there 
were some hundred persons killed ; but I have no concep- 
tion of any cold that could occur at this place, competent to 
effect so much destruction in one night. But I rather be- 
lieve, these pious tributes belong to the votaries of the Vir- 
gin of Chinchinquiraf to one of whose shrines this is the 
high road. 

The custom of designating some points, on pubHc roads, 
by rehgious ceremonies or symbols, has prevailed in every 
part of ancient Europe and Asia. The Parsees hghted 
fires at cross-ways, the Hindus erect altars to the creative 
power at cross-ways, the Romans did the same in another 
form, and under a more artificial figure ; the Germans and 
Saxons had similar customs; the Mahomedans pursue a 
more useful method of piety, they establish, at convenient sta- 
tions, houses of reception for the traveller ; and in other coun- 
tries, the traveller passing a position where some person has 
been murdered, places a stone, which the piety of successive 
passengers raises to a lieap ; such are the cairns of the Bri- 
tish islands ; and where prayers for the dead are enjoined. 
In Colombia the substitute for mile stones, where any mea- 
surement is made, is a cross, and of such dimensions in some 
places, as to be large enough for human crucifixion. We 
found these large crosses to mark the route for many leagues 
after leaving Tinaco, But, as assassination was not unfrequent 
under the Spanish regime, the custom was for the passenger 
to offer up a prayer and plant a small cross on the spot ; the 
passenger, whose education teaches him to excuse the preju- 
dices which uneducated men, or men educated under particu- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S9l 

far circumstances cannot be reproached for, contribute their 
oblation to the frailties of human institution, and enjoy harm- 
lessly their own opinions. Had I not been previously acquaint- 
ed with this rite, I should have been apt to conclude it came 
along with the Moorish architecture and caravanserais , but 
it is evident that, however it came to be introduced, it was 
inseparable from prayers for the dead, and was adopted by 
the early Christians, who adopted many others of the pagan 
forms, and accommodated them to their own disciplinary 
ritual. I suspect, however, and it is my own conjecture, 
that these crosses, set up in such numbers, are the works of 
those pious persons who, every year, flock to one of the 
shrines of the Virgin of Chinchinquiray whose effigies are 
multiplied and spread among the Dominican churches, in 
those regions, and of which some account will be given 
when we reach Nimocon, or Enimacon^ where her ladyship 
detained us for a night, and obliged us to see her procession 
-and a bull-fight. 

On the sides of this and other paramos farther south, a 
plant grows in such abundance as to give its cream-coloured 
hue to the surface on which it flourishes. I have lost a spe- 
cimen and the notes made on seeing it, and forgotten its po- 
pular name, but its structure is of peculiar beauty. The 
stem is short, and the leaves incline outward, showing a 
surface covered with a long yellow coat, which has the feel 
of fine velvet, the leaves are from seven to ten inches long, 
and two broad, terminating abruptly round. It is much 
used for cushions, for sophas, and for beds, which are to be 
found in the cold regions only, where we, though much 
preferring the hammock for repose, were, from the want 
of a pallet or blankets, glad to occupy such beds. The cold 
was so unpleasant in descending this long paramo, that I 
made another attempt to walk down, and had been so braced 
by the cold that I made considerable way, and was more 
than a mile ahead of my companions ; having lost sight of 



39^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

them, I halted under the rays of a warm sun until 1 felt un-- 
easy at their delay ; however, they came in sight ; in fact^ 
the only inconvenience Elizabeth felt in the journey v/as on 
this occasion, she was so overcome that she fainted, her 
brother was fortunately with her, and as we had some wine 
in our travelling beaufette, and what with her good spirits, it 
was over in a few moments. It was the last time she at- 
tempted to walk down a cold paramo, and the security and 
ease of her mule was thenceforward preferred. We were 
very anxious to reach Muchachees, but it was yet two leagues 
off, and the night dark, and we determined to descend to 
Chocopa^ a short distance from the road, where we obtained a 
house, made a good fire, and had some small but excellent 
potatoes boiled, roasted, and fried, with an excellent corned 
tongue, which had been forgotten until sharp appetites re-= 
called it, and we completed, with a bottle of good Spanish 
wine, a rough but a most delicious supper. The cold of 
this night was very disagreeable, and we contrived to make 
some palatable flip with aguardiente gnd panellasy that is 
cakes of sugar, in our calabash turtiimas: this flip served 
some of us in some measure instead of a blanket. Our re- 
pose was however so comfortless, that we moved at three 
o'clock in the morning from Chocopa, and at six we enter- 
ed Muchachees, where we were surprized to find a deputy 
of the alcalde looking out for us. The first alcalde had been 
obliged to be absent at this moment, but had instructed his 
deputy to bestow on us every attention, and provide what- 
ever we should want. We were indeed compensated by his 
kindness and hospitality in a very comfortable house, for our 
sufferings on the paramo and the preceding night. 

When some leagues distant from Muchachees, we were 
all struck by the change of colours in the apparel of all de- 
scriptions of people, young and old. In our journey hither- 
to, the garments of both sexes were light, of white or gay 
colours ; coarse cottons, or linens, on the men ; muslins, ca- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 293 

iicoes, or silks, on the women. We now saw no one in light 
clothing; it seemed as ifa general mourning had taken place 
for some great calamity : the females were uniformly in 
black, or a few in blue petticoats, and, where they were 
not black, wore a black broad scarf like a shawl ; they had 
their heads and shoulders covered with a black or a blue cloth 
mantHla, I mentioned my surprize at this change to the al- 
calde, and was more surprized that what his good sense ex- 
plained had not occurred to me. He said that the garments 
and fabrics worn in the warm vallies, would not resist the 
cold, and dark colours were best adapted to garments which 
do not wash with convenience, nor every day ; that comfort 
and economy dictated the habits which had been so remark- 
able to us, only because suddenly seen after being among 
light garments so long ; indeed, our experience during the 
two last days instructed us not only to augment our own 
clothing while in the cold regions, but to relinquish our fa- 
vourite hammocks, and take up with bedsteads of rude work- 
manship, in which generally an ample ox hide, stretched and 
nailed across, served the purposes of a sacking bottom. 

The second alcalde, in accordance with the wishes of his 
principal, requested us not to have any thing cooked by our 
own people, but that our man Pedro, as best acquainted with 
what was most agreeable to us, should direct ; and it was 
done with such evident kindness and desire to please, that 
it was at once agreed upon ; a most excellent supper was in- 
deed provided ; there could be no better, nor better cured 
corned pork of that size we denominate a shoat^ with good bro- 
coH, and fine potatoes, roast and fricaseed poultry, excellent 
wheaten rolls, more Canary wine than we could consume, and 
so acceptable that it was not necessary " to think it was Bur- 
gundy," though it cost where we were almost as much as 
twelve shillings a quart, and was worth more ; for what 
makes worth but the use or satisfaction which it produces. 

Our attendants were as well tre^ited as ourselves, and our 



^94 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

mules were supplied not only with abundance of green bar= 
ley, but with Indian meal. Our night's repose was comfort^ 
able, as blankets were abundant, and we rose about seven 
o'clock in the morning of the 28th December, and had 
scarcely appeared when an excellent breakfast of both coffee 
and chocolate, with cakes fresh and well baked, some Bo- 
logna sausages without garlic, and some very excellent fruit 
which the alcalde had sent for in the preceding night to the 
lower regions ,• and the fine young man greeted us on our 
evident recovery from the previous day's fatigue, with such 
sociable kindness, as merits to be remembered, at least I 
shall not forget it very soon. 



CHAPTER XX. 

Hospitality .-—Leave Muchachees. — Meet the senior alcalde™his kindness.— \ il. 
lage of Mucabichi.— Wheat mountain — reaping — a warmer climate— cotton- 
trees— some account of. — Tabay — turbulent Chama. — Plateau of Merida.— Go- 
vernor Paredes— sumptuous accommodation and entertainment — surprised by 
an alarm o^ fire, fire — false alarm — laughable — accounted for. — Sierra nevads 
of Merida — its ices on the table, — give zest to our wine. — Military gentle- 
men. — The Spaniards in our road — an escort ordered for uSo— Visitors — their 
inquiries gratified. — Temperature. — The effects of the Earthquake. — -Popula- 
tion — several sources of error concerning it, — Archbishop Gongora.- — Repre- 
sentative government. — Democracy pervei'ted. — Rivers near Merida. — Vin- 
cente at a fandango — in durance vile. — A refresco before parting, on the oOth 
December, delays us to one o'clock. — Determined to sleep at Exido. 

Our repose at this place was very pleasing — we were 
furnished with bedding-clothes more than we required : it 
was with some repugnance I rose at seven o'clock, nor 
should 1 have risen till an hour later, had not the kindness 
of our host rendered the respect of waiting on him a matter 
of propriety. He had provided us not only with as good a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 295 

breakfast as we could have found in Philadelphia, but the 
chocolate and the coffee were smoking on the table. We 
partook of the repast with most grateful and pleasant feel- 
ings—and we afterwards found, that he had placed on our 
mules & quantity of eggs, and a pair of roasted fowls, with 
slices of nice corned pork, carefully and neatly wrapped up. 

We left Muchachees at eight o'clock, and had proceeded 
but a few miles when the senior alcalde met us, in full gal- 
lop, on his return ; he saluted us kindly, prayed us to return 
and spend at least a day at his house, and he would introduce 
to us some company, whom we should be as much pleased 
with as they would be with us. We declined returning at 
that time, and expressed our grateful sense of the kindness 
with which his faithful representative had entertained us. 
He renewed his request that we would spend a few days with 
him, and I was obliged to assure him I had been on the 
road already twenty days longer than was consistent with the 
affairs I had in charge. This was nearly the last, and cer- 
tainly among the best of the alcaldes we had met ; from this 
point, the alcaldes, with a few exceptions, became only se- 
condary among our hospitable entertainers, until we passed 
Tunja. 

We passed through Mucabichi, near which, entering a 
narrow pass between two mountains, of very steep sides, 
we saw reapers at work, in a position that was entirely new 
and unheard of by me. The houses or cottages, which 
were but few, stood on the more depressed side of the pass ; 
we entered one of those cottages to procure potatoes or milk, 
and indulge curiosity ; the woman of the house spoke to her 
husband from the door ; he stood with his back towards 
her, on the steep side of the mountain, where he was reaping 
some very fine wheat. The mountain side was ranged in 
steps, running level along in front, the wheat had been sown 
on those steps, and the reaper commencing below, cut and 
left the cut straw to a small boy or a girl to be tied up in 



296 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

sheaves ; the lower step being cleared, he proceeded to the 
next above, and so in succession to the top. The sides of 
the mountains of Merida are celebrated for their fine wheat, 
said to be sufficient to supply the whole republic, were there 
roads to transport it. But seaports are too distant, where 
the roads are either impassable, dangerous, or tedious to 
travel, or where there are no roads at all. Our route was 
now a gentle descent, the presence of wheat was an indica- 
tion of a temperate climate ; but it soon became warm, as 
we descended, the mountains on our left had wound off to 
the south-east, and that on our right was now less elevated, 
and its base was, in some respects, like those of the valley of 
Aragua, throwing out short limbs or promontories, standing 
out more or less advanced from the main ridge. Winding 
round the bluff" of one of those projections, the ground be- 
came depressed and fiat on our left, and covered here and 
there with large fragments of dispersed rocks, among which 
trees appeared, bearing a flower in great profusion, that gave 
it the appearance of what is commonly called the Snowball^ 
[Hydrangea hortensis-) The space between the rocks on the 
left, and the bluff on the right, now became narrow, and, as 
the passage opened, several neat, small cottages stood before 
the sun, and in their front the trees in blossom : a little girl, 
of about eight or ten, skipt across the road as we were ap- 
proaching, and mounting, with the agility of a goat, the 
rocks beneath those trees, which grew in the narrow intervals 
that separated the rocks. The tree was about the size of an 
ordinary apple-tree, but with an erect stem, and from the 
surface of the soil to the lower branches about five feet ; the 
extent and elevation of the branches varied ; but the shape 
was rather inclined to that of the thick end of an c^g, than a 
sharper cone ; I halted, and seeing the little girl with two 
small baskets on her arm, into which she sorted the flowers 
she picked, I halted till she had concluded, and foUoAved her 
across the road. Her baskets were filled, and the flowers she 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 297 

plucked were of two kinds, one was filled with pods of cot= 
ton, already ripe, and requiring only exposure to the sun to 
be wrought and cleaned ; the other basket contained pods not 
so ripe, but which were laid on a bed of clean snow-white cot-^ 
ton to complete its ripening by the sun. The little girl, and 
there were several other females, placed herself on her mat, 
and very unconcernedly continued her operations, opening 
two pods at the same time, with the thumb, and over the 
fore-finger of each hand, discharging the seed into a basket 
placed for the purpose, and forming the product of each pod 
into a long flat layer, upon which she successively laid others ; 
and when the pile was of the purposed size it was twisted 
into a knot-like shape, and placed among others, and covered 
over. Though these were not the first cotton-trees I had 
seen on the route, I had not attended to them so circum- 
stantially as on this occasion. I cannot avoid observing 
that the botanical books are very deficient as to this tree ; 
there seems to be a doubt entertained in some of them, 
that cotton grows on trees as large as the ordinary apple- 
tree, because the plant which produces cotton in Macedonia, 
and in the United States, is an annual plant. The cotton- 
tree, I make no doubt, would benefit by more care and cul- 
tivation. But as it is, no culture is applied, the tree grows 
from the seed, and when mature, besides two crops in the 
year, that of spring and fall, it is a perpetual producer. 

Our next stage brought us to the village of Tabay, stand- 
ing on a sloping plain, which lay spread below us, and the 
turbulent Chama in the distance on our left, bounding over 
rocks and frothing with its noise, as it tumbled headlong to 
south-west. We reached Tabay at two o'clock, and dined 
on our own provisions, and as the atmosphere was warm, did 
not move until four o'clock, so that it was nearly dusk when 
we reached the dry bed of the river Mouhoon, which has 
its source in the west, and discharges its periodical flood in 
the rainy season into the Chama. The lofty platform orr 

38 



29B VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which stands the city of Merida, has its eastern face defmed 
by this river, and in order to reach that city, it is necessary to 
pass some distance up the Mouhoon valley, in order to gain 
the broad path which is cut out of the upright bank, that 
leads by a gradual ascent to the plateau above. We gained 
this elevation, said to be more than two hundred and forty 
feet above the plain from which we ascended. The sergeant 
proceeded to the city about a mile distant, and, knowing the 
place had a governor and military staff, we proceeded in that 
direction. Governor Paredes ordered a sumptuous house for 
our reception, the apartments were well lighted, handsome 
beds were prepared for us all ; and in an hour after our arri- 
val, an ample table was covered with fine damask linen, and 
a supper in the handsomest style ; the governor's servants 
waited ; his butler intimated that we should oblige the gene- 
ral by calling for any wine we preferred. An aid of the go- 
vernor spent the evening and supped with us, and delivered 
a compliment upon our safe arrival from the governor, and 
that he would wait upon us next day. We were ready for 
repose at ten. 

The house we occupied in Merida was public property, 
and kept in better condition than any I had seen since we left 
Valencia. As the bed was comfortable, and I felt the neces- 
sity of rest, I took no heed of waking early, but soon after 
dawn, I was suddenly aroused by a cry of '•'•fire! fire! fireP^ 
as distinctly as it is heard in Philadelphia. I started up, un- 
conscious for the instant where I was, and it was only on go- 
ing to a window which opened on a small patio, I recollect- 
ed I was in Merida ; I was turning about in the same un- 
heeding manner, when the same voice screamed " Colo?iei 
Todd! Colonel Todd!'''' I knew the colonel must by that 
time be at Bogota, and I must have looked rather sheepish j 
when I found myself thus surprized by a parrot. In fact, 
Colonel Todd, on his route to Bogota, lodged in the same 
place ; Colonel Lyster, of the Colombian army, accompanied 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 299 

him ; and being delayed there by the indisposition of Mr. 
Adams, the colonel's secretary, Lyster, in his waggery, had 
taught the parrot those words. There was a pair, and they 
were certainly amusing ; their colloquies, kept up in imita- 
tion of two scolding women, were most laughably true in 
word and spirit. The repose of Sunday was necessary to 
me, and, having made a perfect change of apparel, for the 
climate here is warm as at Caracas, I amused myself with 
writing letters to home and to our friends at Caracas and 
elsewhere. Our morning repast, coffee and chocolate, with 
fine cream, good bread, and, what I preferred to all, abun- 
dance of exquisite fruit. At two o'clock the governor was 
pleased to visit, with his suite, and did us the honour of din- 
ing with us. 

From the window of the dining room, directly to the 
south, the Sierra Nevada^ of Merida, was so distinctly be- 
fore us, that it seemed less than two miles distant : the snow 
is never absent from this lofty cluster ; but, at the moment we 
saw it, a greater part than usual of the south-west face was 
exposed, and its black soil uncovered ; cliffs were distinctly 
visible on the margin of the snow, made distinct by the sha- 
dows of the vertical edges, chasms having apparently fallen, 
and masses rolled lower down which were also visible ; the 
governor had sent mules for snow the preceding evening, 
and a tray full of it gave zest to some excellent wine, which 
the warm temperature of the city made desirable and delight- 
ful. The computed distance of the white caps of the sierra is 
five miles in a direct line ; the travelling distance to the line of 
congelation seven miles. The town major of Merida was anEng- 
lish gentleman, Major Hodgkinson, who had served in several 
campaigns, was very communicative, and from whom we 
experienced very kind attention ; the military commandant 
of the province, Colonel Charles Castelli, a native of Savoy ; 
be had come to Merida to communicate with the gene- 
ral on the movements of Morales; he paid us a visit, and 



300 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

signified that the governor was apprehensive of some incon- 
venience to us on the road, as it was supposed the Spanish 
general had taken a position on the only route over which we 
could travel ; that if we should choose to remain some time 
it would be agreeable to the governor, if not, an escort would 
be provided for us, and he would give me an order to the 
commanding officer at St. Juan de Lagunillas, to furnish the 
troops, and to the officers in succession, till we should reach 
Pamplona, which he kindl}^ presented when we were about 
to depart ; Colonel Castelli set off before us with the view 
of calling in troops to unite with the troops further south in 
expelling the enemy from the province. 

We were honoured with the visits of several distinguished 
persons, many of the secular clergy, whom we found very 
earnestly devoted to the revolution, and solicitous for inform- 
ation concerning the United States. They expressed some 
surprise, when we informed them, in reply to their inquiries, 
that so many religious sects should live in concord, and that 
the clergy wore no costume to distinguish them from the 
laity ; that the Catholic priests dressed like the priests of 
other sects ; and that Congress, having chaplains, selected 
them without discrimination of sects, Catholic and Calvinist, 
Lutheran and Unitarian, which excited great surprise ; and 
particularly that doctrinal disputes produced no serious quar- 
rels, no interference of the public authorities, nor ill-blood 
among the disputants, more than any civil or political dis- 
cussion ; and, as I could not account for it in a better way, 
I told them it was to be ascribed to the representative system, 
which, being founded on the equality of men in society, se- 
parated the concerns of another world from the present ; that 
by leaving every man's religious opinions to be accounted 
for to heaven, men were more tolerant and liberal, because the 
sectarian opinions of one man did not render his elective suf- 
frage of more or less consequence than that of another. They 
were as much surprised at an anecdote I gave them, of Dr, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 301 

Franklin having nominated, and obtained the appointment, 
from the Pope, of the first American Catholic bishop. Some 
of the citizens who were present, expressed their admiration of 
the institutions which produced so much concord, with en- 
thusiastic applause, and some of the clergymen concurred. 
One of them said to another, " Whai would such a person 
think, if he heard this ?" Some of the ladies of the city vi- 
sited my daughter, and invited her to spend some time in 
Merida, and as an inducement assured her she would find 
no part of Colombia so beautiful as Merida, nor so fine a 
climate. Indeed the thermometer was at this time at 70 de- 
grees of Fahrenheit, which is lower than at Caracas, where 
78 was the medium, as 68 was the medium at Bogota while 
we were there. 

In noticing the singular appearance of the banks of the 
Motatan, I made allusion to the elevated plateau of Merida, 
and its steep banks. This city stands about a mile and a 
half from the margin of its southern side, in front of which 
the turbulent Chama rolls over its rough bed, at the foot of 
the snow-capt Sierra, its course south-west; the streets of 
the city cross at rectangles, are very narrow, but streams of 
pure water gush along the centre of the streets, for which 
well-conceived channels are constructed, of two feet or more 
wide, over which flag-stones are laid at the crossings ; and 
the city has a cool and cleanly appearance. I saw no houses 
higher than one story ; and the ruins of the earthquake of 
1812 had not yet been redeemed, nor removed only from 
the streets. It was but a few weeks before our arrival, that 
the remains of the bishop, who, with his congregation, found 
a grave in the crumbled earthen walls of his church, were 
dug out for a religious interment. The walls are of the 
same ingredient as elsewhere, pita, or earth, beaten into the 
shape of walls. The mortality has been exaggerated here 
as well as at Caracas ; the diiference between the present state 
of the population and before the revolution cannot be ascrib- 



B0% VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

ed to the earthquake ; though zealots adverse to the revolu- 
tion have laboured to make the impression that divine ven- 
geance was thus indicated against the revolt. This city has 
suffered much from the depredations of the Spaniards, and a 
great portion of the population had retired to the south-east- 
ern and southern valleys, and to the vv^est, before the earth- 
quake occurred ; and this diminution of numbers by the 
change of habitation has been placed to the loss side of the 
earthquake. I must observe here, that I have endeavoured 
to find data for the state of population in the places I have 
passed through, but it is not in such passing and casual en- 
quiries that information so important can be procured that 
should be relied upon. The state of society has been, during 
the revolution, and is still fluctuating, and must continue sp 
for some time ; under the monarchy the same system was 
pursued, as for centuries by the English, till the close of the 
last century, in Ireland ; the inhabitants were studiously kept 
in ignorance of their own numbers, and taught to believe 
they did not amount to one- third of their actual population. 
The government of Spain was also deceived itself, for there 
were local interests which prevented a complete knowledge. 
There was always a kind of organization of militia under the 
Spanish rule ; and there were districts over which captains 
were placed, whose duty it was to make returns of the males 
between fourteen and fifty ; and it was upon these returns 
that drafts were made upon an exigency. There was an ex- 
treme disinclination to appear on those returns, and the cap- 
tains made a lucrative advantage of it, by exacting money 
for not entering names of persons who were able to pay for 
being omitted on the returns ; and the abuse was very gene- 
ral. There was another resort, that of the clergy distributed 
in parishes or missions ; as the revenue of the bishops was 
derived from the income of the clergy, the clergy who had 
cures, or the charge of the souls in districts, were obliged 
to make returns of their communicants, as well as of those 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 3()S 

who neglected communion ; had these returns been faithful- 
ly made, they would have been, perhaps, the best means, as 
the system of confessional tickets kept the parochial popula- 
tion constantly under the subjection and terror of its pastor. 
When an individual went to confession and received the 
sacrament, a ticket was given ; which he was obliged, under 
pain of spiritual displeasure, to preserve ; it was dated, and 
always told whether the individual had attended, " at least at 
Easter," as is the disciplinary order. The pastor also visited 
his flock at their homes to administer spiritual comfort, 
and he never failed to inquire for the tickets of each indi- 
vidual, and to exact penance on defalcation ; the ticket of 
the last year, was, at the confession, changed for one of the 
new year. The curates, probably thinking that they were as 
well entitled to more of the revenue than the superior was 
disposed to allow, escaped the trouble and displeasure of 
disputation, by omitting, on his returns, a great portion of 
those for whose souls they laboured ; and thus the reports of 
the bishops, which they were called to make to the arch-bish- 
ops, to whom they were suffragans, were also reduced in the 
aggregate. It is related that a practice of some pious fe- 
males, in the article of tickets of confession, sometimes 
made the returns more ample than they really were, as more 
than one, often half a dozen confessors travelled over a large 
district ; those old ladies having confessed to their pastor, 
under their own names, sometimes made a confession to 
others of the itinerants, under the names of others with 
whom they had previously stipulated for the purchase of 
these extra-confessional testimonials. As this practice was 
confined to females it was not always discovered, but the 
number must very little affect the reports of the pastors. 
Another difficulty was in the cahildos^ or corporations, the 
members of which being elected by suffrage, obliged their 
friends by omitting their names, when contributions or ser- 
vices were in question, and when called upon for the popu* 



a04 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

latioii of their districts had an interest also in diminishing 
the returns. So that, though Spain was deceived, her poli- 
cy in diminishing numbers was favoured even by the frauds 
of every class of functionaries who were competent to afford 
accurate information. Humboldt, who frankly acknow- 
ledges that his statistics of population were derived from 
official papers, thus had to form his estimates from data that 
were in their very inception false ; for which he is not to be 
censured, because there were no other means to obtain even an 
approximation. The justly celebrated archbishop and, vice- 
roy, Antonio Caballero y Gongara, who became viceroy in 
1783, undertook to overcome all those abuses, and not only 
to make a complete survey and map of the viceroyalty, but 
to accomplish, by means of the curates, a true state of the 
population, both of which he accomplished ; accident placed 
a duplicate original of this map under my notice several years 
ago ; for the convenience of transportation, by post, it was 
cut into parts in order to be lent, but there remains only that 
part which embraces Guayana and Cumana in my possession, 
the parts borrowed have never been reiurned, arid are very 
probably lost. The population, at that period, was much 
greater than what Humboldt has allowed, even in his latest 
corrected estimates, in which he acknowledges the territory 
occupied by Indian tribes had been omitted in his former 
statements. It is only in a few provinces that a close esti- 
mate has ever been made and published before the revolu- 
tion. 

The new form of government is calculated to assure more 
faithful returns. The citizen, where he has a right of suf- 
frage, will assert it ; it is, indeed, true, that in this respect the 
principle of filtration, so tatal to the French m their revolution, 
and to which, in my opinion, may be mainly attributed the 
failure of the French republic ; because there was no respon- 
sibility directly to the people ; they voted only for a new 
kind of aristocracy y who disregarded the wishes of those who 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 305 

composed the people ; and the assemblies thus constituted, 
were the mere instruments of conflicting cabals, which were 
multiplied in every department, and made the constituent 
assembly itself a mere engine of numerous cabals. The 
enemies of representative government, however, have so lit- 
tle regard for facts, and are so disingenuous or feeble mind- 
ed, as to ascribe the failure of the French republic to demo- 
cracy — when the real principle of democracy, that is, repre- 
sentation by equal and free suffrage, was utterly cast out in 
every public assembly from beginning to end : — ruin fol- 
lowed as an inevitable consequence, and must follow every- 
where when free universal suffrage is wantonly or perfidiously 
abrogated or refused. In noticing the constitution of Co- 
lombia, I shall, perhaps, speak more on this subject. It has 
come in here as an incident arising in conversation connect- 
ed with population. 

Four rivers mark the outline of the plateau on which Me- 
rida stands ; this plateau forms a quadrilateral parallelogram, 
or lozenge, of which the Mohoon, the Chama, the Alvare- 
jes, and the Montalvan, form the sides. On the south front 
facing the Chama, the bed of the river exceeds a mile and a 
half, but in the dry season the stream plunges along the 
left side of the valley, at the foot of the Sierra, in a south- 
west direction, occupying about one-sixth of its flooded 
bed ; on the Merida side, the face of the bank is steep, per- 
pendicular, and composed of a grey earth, reputed to be two 
hundred and forty feet above the dry bed of the river ; from 
the town there is a gentle slope of about a mile and a half to 
the edge of this steep bank, which is covered with rich ver- 
dure to the very acute brink, and the plain generally has a gra- 
dual inclination in the direction of the stream of the Chama. 
One of the phenomena connected with the earthquake of 1812, 
is a crevice on the face of this steep bank, fronting the Chama ; 
it is a simple opening of the edge of the natural rampart, 
and, for about half a mile inward, is wedge-shaped, broad, 

39 



306 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

and open at the summit, closing to an acute point below. 
This crevice was produced by a single shock ; the rest of 
the platform retained the form it still holds ; and, considering 
the materials of the steep bank, it appears unaccountable that 
the earth had not changed its vertical form. 

Our baggage had not reached us the night of our arri» 
val at Merida, but arrived the next morning, only leaving 
Vincent in custody of the alcalde of the village of Tabay. 
I dispatched the sergeant to inquire concerning him ; it ap= 
peared that he had detained the baggage in order to show his 
Caracanian style of dancing ; and, having indulged over- 
much in guarapa, his gallantry alarmed some of the paisanos 
of Tabay ; who, threatening to flog him, Vincent drew his 
sabre, like the Knight of Mancha, and was about to vindi- 
cate his gallantry in presence of some Seiiorita del Toboso, 
when the alcalde thought fit to trip up his heels and treat 
liim like the woful-faced knight. He was disarmed, and 
placed in " durance vile." I was satisfied Vincent merited 
worse than he got, but I did not like that my sword should 
be taken and kept, though it were through my servant. I 
explained the matter to the governor, who kindly proposed 
to let Vincent remain a short time in custody, and that the 
governor would send the sword forward after me. 

Had we been disposed to remain a month, we should have 
gratified these hospitable people, particularly the worthy 
veteran Paredes : we, however, lingered on in conversation, 
on the morning of the 30th December, that it gave these 
good people an opportunity to introduce a refresco^ some 
fine fruit and claret : and it was one o'clock before we could 
separate ; I determined to go as far as Exido, about four- 
teen miles, and move early the next morning. 



307 



CHAPTER XXI. 

Exido an old town — rich country — a civil alcalde — depart first of January— ap- 
prehensions and false news — La LaguanlUas — lake of natron — some account of 
— Uroa — Mo — Chimo — luxuries — revenues — floods of the Cordillera — move 

forward — noisy river — tremendous path tarabita — Estanques — rumour—" 

reach Bayladores — silent as death. 

We reached Exido at five o'clock, and were surprized to 
find a town of some antiquity, though it consisted of few 
streets ; we entered the plaza, which, though paved and spa- 
cious was nearly covered by the verdure, and with less indus- 
try than better knowledge proved to prevail there ; the houses 
also were principally of two stories, and the inhabitants all 
husbandmen. The town had the appearance of a gradual 
decay, but, like others, had been left without a principal 
part of its population, who, removing first for a temporary 
purpose, had many of them taken root elsewhere ; but the 
*ilcalde, who was a shrewd experienced man, observed that 
the country all round v»7as too fine and fertile to be long with- 
out inhabitants. We had quarters in the alcalde's house, and 
he provided us with some of the finest fruit for immediate use, 
and a basket-full to carry away. The first of January, 1823, 
we moved early, the alcalde giving us the news, with a cau- 
tion, which displayed his good nature and his apprehensions 
— it was that Morales had entered Bayladores, a town only 
four stages distant on our route, and this proved to be true. 
It was sufficiently distant, however, not to give us imme- 
diate apprehensions, and, as we had orders for an escort at 
the next post, we pushed across the plain, and at two o'clock 
we entered San Juan cle Laguanillas, on the Rio Gonzales, 
a stream tributary to the Zulia. There was a picket guard 
at the entrance of the town, under charge of a lieutenant, to 



308 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

whom we presented ourselves with an enquiry for the com- 
manding officer, who was absent ; and after more than an 
hour's delay, he not returning, we sought for the alcalde, 
who gave us wretched accommodations in his pulpureia, 
where we hung up our hammocks. The place was much 
crowded with fugitives from Maracaibo and other contiguous 
places, a Senor Limares, who had learned something about 
lis, insisted on our partaking of dinner with him ; and a very 
good entertainment (for the place) was provided, with excel- 
lent tinto wine. Several ladies, fugitives, with their children, 
were in this village. It was my intention to visit the celebrated 
lake of natron, which is contiguous to this town, but it was not 
practicable under the military circumstances of the country, 
and we excited the alcalde, who required some spirit to move 
him, to provide mules, which, he assured us, we should have 
a la manana, which, though it originally signified in the moru' 
ing, sometimes signifies next week, and very often never; 
I had resort to the commanding officer, who did not put it 
off a la 7nana}ia; the officer of our escort waited on us to 
know the hour at which we proposed to depart. It was 
arranged, that we should move at four o'clock in the 
morning, and the escort an hour before to meet us at a point 
designated. 

The town of St. Juan de la Laguanillas, derives its name, 
St John of the little lake, from a remarkable lake, at a short 
distance from the town. I had been long acquainted with 
its general history, as a source of singular luxury, in several 
parts of Venezuela, and that, during the Spanish rule, it had 
been, coeval with the monopoly of tobacco, also monopo- 
lized and made a source of royal revenue ; the state of things 
in relation to the Spaniards, the circumstances of the guard 
so generously provided for our escort, rendered it not practi- 
cable ; I made some enquiries, on the spot, of some intelli- 
gent persons, M'ho were exiles from Maracaybo, and from 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 309 

the officer of our escort, from which, and the account given 
bv Palacios, I derive what I shall here state. 

The lake is of an oval form, better than four hundred 
yards long, and two hundred and fifty broad. On the east 
side it is three or four fathoms deep when the floods from 
the adjacent mountains come down ; and, although the eva- 
poration at the warm season is considerable, the lake is never 
dry, nor so much diminished as would be deemed probable. 
On the west side it is shallow, but has a descent gradually 
deeper for one hundred and fifty yards ; and it is on this 
sloping depth, that the operation of collecting the Uroa^ or 
natron, or carbonate of soda takes place ; for upon chemical 
analysis it appears that this substance resembles in its compo- 
sition the natron of Egypt and of Fezzan. The accounts 
verbally given do not exactly agree with those of Palacios, 
but, as in the case of the gold washings, which will be noticed 
hereafter, the modes of collecting the Uroa may be different 
with different persons. I shall, however, notice both as 
the natural products of those countries become every day 
objects of greater interest, and will continue to do so. 

According to the verbal information, the uroa is found in 
prismatic crystals less than an inch in length, and not of 
equal thickness, nor equally heavy ; I could not learn whe- 
ther the sides of the crystals were of equal numbers, nor in- 
deed of how many sides, only that they were angular, and ra- 
ther flat than uniform in their thickness. A class of the abori- 
gines, some of whom were at the alcalde's posada, — a very 
portly muscular race of men, — and they are all so described ; 
those who work at the lake are called Huragueras, and their- 
labour was thus described : they carry some very rude imple- 
ments, such as a stake, shod with a sharp iron ; a sort of 
scoop or shovel ; some hoes, with long handles ; and a sort 
of little boat (piraiigidtas), which they put afloat when they 
go to work, and the use of which will presently be seen. 
As described to me, the Avorkmen, either from some skill 



310 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

real or imagined, select a space, which, with a few comrades, 
they mark off by stakes driven into the bottom, and within 
which no other party encroaches. The first process is to remove 
a coat of mud, which is drawn inward, and conveyed in 
the piraugidtas to the shore, where it is heaped up ; this be- 
ing removed, the crystallized natron is said to be found in a 
hard crust, that requires force to break it, which is the 
purpose of the iron-shod stakes ; the masses thus broken are 
collected and taken up, and in like manner carried to the 
bank, and exposed to the sun till the working hour is over, 
when it is removed into houses prepared for its preservation. 

Under the royal power an officer was appointed, by whose 
direction the operations were conducted ; magazines were 
provided where the uroa vi^as deposited under his direction, 
and whence it was distributed to government depots in 
the provinces where it was in demand. At that period the 
collection took place only every second year, and continued 
then only two months. Since the revolution, the royal offi- 
<;ers disappeared, and private individuals have appropriated 
the product to their own emolument, and work it every year 
at the fit season. 

The other account agrees in general with this, but is con- 
fined to the royal period. At that time the Hiiragiieras were 
divided into squads of eight or ten, and staked oft' the ground 
as mentioned in the preceding account, but no notice is taken 
of the mud first removed, and the Huragueras are described 
as diving for the lumps of the natron which they disengage : 
the operation is represented as very pernicious to health, and 
that the hair of the Huragueras becomes reddish. At that 
period the product of the two months in two years averaged 
fifteen hundred weight ; triple the quantity has been collect- 
ed since the revolution, and it has been worked every year. 
Under the royalty Venezuela consumed the whole amount, 
it being first dried in the sun, and was issued at a real the 
pound (twelve and a half cents). 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 311 

The uroa was connected with another luxury called mo^ 
prepared from tobacco. A heap of the ripe tobacco leaves 
mixed with the leaves of other green plants, was exposed to 
fermentation, and in that state yielded by compression a dark 
reddish liquid, the exhalations from which were deleterious, 
and the flavour very acrid or pungent. This liquid, called 
anvir^ reduced to a syrup, was called mo^ which being incor- 
porated in the proportions of one ounce of uroa dried, roasted 
or pulverized, formed what was called mo-duke^ or sweet mo ; 
if the proportion of uroa to mo was two ounces or more to 
the pound, then it was called ehimo. 

In the provinces of Maracaybo, Varinas, and Caracas, 
these different kinds, uroa^ mo, mo-dulce, and chimo, were 
articles of luxury in very considerable demand, and were 
kept in boxes of horn : I did not learn how the various kinds 
were used, only that some people took a small quantity from 
the boxes, and used it as men chew tobacco, or as the orien= 
tals chew betel, and like betel it is a powerful stimulus to the 
nervous system, produces copious saliva, and a light delirium 
of agreeable sensation, which the betel also certainly does ; 
I had no opportunity to test the mo, or any of its family, and 
must confess myself sceptical on this point. 

In 1804, six years before the revolution, these articles be- 
ing comprehended in the monopoly of tobacco, altogether, 
after defraying all charges, yielded 700,000 dollars to the re- 
venue ; but I was not able to ascertain how much of this 
amount belonged to the natron branch of the revenue, and 
the republic has not yet brought the income to the public 
treasury ; but it was among the objects of finance under the 
cognizance of the treasurv, and of a committee of con- 
gress. The government of Colombia in this, as in many 
other cases, displays its discretion and moderation ; persons 
who have laid pretensions to this and other objects upon a 
mere pragmatic assumption, sometimes construe the revolu- 
tion as a measure of personal aggrandizement, and trouble 



312 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

themselves very little, if at all, about rights or social princi^ 
pies of government ; the government is fully aware of this, 
but magnanimously prefers moderate courses, though pos- 
sessed of perfect power to put an end to such transgressions. 

Palacios says, that the environs of this place, and the 
roads near Merida, and the Albarrigas, as well as some 
mountains adjacent, have a peculiar richness of verdure ; 
and that certain plants, particularly the Rosa de Muerto^ are 
found there ; and that similar appearances and products mark 
the neighbourhood of the salt- quarries of Zipiquira and of 
Enimacon. The beauty of the open grounds near Merida, 
and adjacent to La Laguanillas, is unquestionable ; but I 
found it not confined to particular spots there, nor at Eni- 
macon. Zipiquira itself, in the distance, looked very dreary 
to me ; but the plains around were rich in verdure. 

The Cordillera, which shows its eternal snow in front of 
Merida, is yet visible at Laguanilla, and its branches seem 
here detached and cut into groups and lofty steeps. The 
floods, from these sublime heights, plunge into the lower re- 
gions on both sides ; those of the north side, upon which 
our course lay, poured out the turbulent Chama, which was, 
in this neighbourhood, swelled with the waters of the Gon- 
zales, and, on our route, the roar of the Chama, like the rush 
of a great cataract, was constantly in our ears, till we found 
it forcing its roaring torrent over tremendous rocks, which 
seemed to have been torn from the mountains by its rage in 
the valley leading to Estanques. The floods on the south 
side of Cordillera are more numerous ; they tear the face of 
the Cordillera into vast vertical trenches, cutting its sides 
across at short distances, and, by this means, compelling the 
traveller to ascend the loftiest grounds, because roads along 
these torn sides would be impracticable, unless upon the line 
of their direction to their union with the Apure and Casi- 
nare. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 313 

According to our arrangement we were mounted at four 
o'clock, and the moon being very bright, we rode with great 
pleasure through the mazes of this beautiful, but wild, re- 
gion, when, turning the point of a tremendous rock, we 
were surprised with — " Quien vive ?" — who comes there ? it 
was the challenge of the rear guard of our escort, we there- 
fore answered " Colomhianor which is the favourite response ; 
paisano, answering to citizen or countrymariy is also usual, 
and well received. We soon overtook the escort, who were 
here all infantry. Our appearance, any where else, would 
have been a fine subject for the humorist. But we were all 
in fine spirits, the Spaniards notwithstanding, unaware that we 
were approaching by much the most hazardous part of our 
road. The officer in command of the escort gave us advice 
how to act, and signified that there was a long pass in the 
mountain in which only one could move at a time, and he 
must send his men forward, so as not to be interrupted by 
persons coming in the opposite direction. The sun was 
beaming on the tops of the Sierra as we reached the entrance 
of the valley leading towards Estanques. The hoarse roar of 
the Chama had been heard, but yet in the distance ; it ran 
away from Merida like a growling bear, — here it made an up- 
roar that stunned us. An opening, such as if a mountain of 
rock had been cleft from its summit to its base, and each 
summit had reclined backward without moving the base, had 
tumbled stupendous rocks into the chasm, under and over 
which the water forced its way with a tremendous noise, and 
forming a cascade, poured a vast volume into a great bason 
formed by its own power. 

The face of the lofty plain over which we marched breaks 
abruptly across the valley ; on the right side a lofty mountain 
gave a savage aspect to the east ; and quite fresh, as if it had 
been but just rent from its side, there lay, some forty roods 
across the valley, the immense debris, which had cast itself 
down. The descent, from the plain we stood upon, appeared 

40 



Bi'i VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

impracticable, but the mules, accustomed to the route, soco 
moved to a gap which appeared to be dug out of the deep 
side of the precipice, consisting of the fragments and fraC" 
lures of a kind of free-stone, wrought into winding lines of 
descent and landings, ^hich we all succeeded in descending 
safe. At the bottom a vast rock spread for many yards, and 
extended its flat surface to the left, beneath which edge the 
bason, into which the Chama discharged its torrent, a deep 
broad volume of transparent water rushed through a channel 
between forty and fifty feet wide. Across this sublime cur- 
rent, and thirty feet above its surface, four trees, of about 
seventy or eighty feet long, were laid, the small and large 
ends alternate ; upon those trees a bed of brush- wood fag- 
gots was laid cross-wise over the whole extent, and gravel 
and earth had been laid on those faggots, and beaten into an 
even pathway. This was our only way of passing, and it 
was without hand-rail or any other side security. Elizabeth^ 
whose confidence in her mule was well founded, pushed up 
to the bridge, and went over perfectly unconcerned, and we 
all followed, though I must confess not without apprehen- 
sion ; what with the roar of the waters, the rapid race of the 
current underneath, through which, though deep and rapid, 
the coloured pebbles could be distinctly seen, the height and 
nakedness of the kind of bridge, and the trees, giving an 
elastic action to the tread of the mule, made it really formid- 
able. No accident whatever occurred ; when we gained 
the left bank we procured some fresh water, and halted to 
refresh. The officer of the escort was heard to whistle, and 
presently some of those he had detached in advance answer- 
ed and returned, and informed us the pass was clear, and 
that we should find them at the other extremity. 

We commenced our ascent of the Sierra, over a tolera- 
ble mountain pathway, through a copse or scrubby wood. 
The Chama, after escaping through the defile, spread its wa- 
ters more to the right and left, and had wrought a deeper 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 315 

bed beneath the steep, whose sides we were now ascend- 
ing gradually, until we cleared the copse : — the broad bed 
of the Chama, which it occupies in flood times, was now 
exposed, covered with several layers of loose rounded rock 
and stone. The path we had ascended was formed on the 
left by the scarp of the mountain, out of which it was exca- 
vated ; and on the right by the dwarf trees ; we were soon at 
the upper extremity, and a sort of shelf cut from the clayey 
side of the Sierra, sufficient for one mule to pass, was our 
only road. The side of the mountain has been here and 
there washed into ravines, and the adjacent sides rounded 
into those ravines, the path becomes a succession of winding 
curves, each terminating in the sharp indenting of the ra- 
vines, and renewing a new projecting curve. The sides of 
the rounded mounds, and the whole range, upon which the 
path- way or shelf lies, is about seven or eight hundred feet 
above the current of the Chama, and, while riding, I took 
from the bank, on my left, a handful of the soil, and shifting 
it to my right, extending my right arm, the soil fell directly 
into the Chama. To stand even at a window, at so great 
an elevation, sometimes affects the head ; but here it was rid- 
den without any dizziness or disquietude ; the mule would 
sometimes stoop over the very verge of the steep to pluck 
some wild plant growing there. But this ease and com- 
posure I attribute entirely to the confidence which cannot 
but be the consequence of security in the mule, after some 
days experience. 

As our ride was of necessity in Indian file, and very slow, 
we occupied much time in this passage ; but we had not yet 
completed it. When we had passed the last curved protru- 
sion of the Sierra, we had to descend about forty yards, and 
to gain a rock about twenty feet from the side of the moun- 
tain shelf path. The connexion between the main rock, 
was a narrow ledge which seemed to be a large slab of twen- 
ty-three or twenty-four feet in length, and from deven to 



3J6 VISIT TO COLOMBIAc 

twelve inches thick ; this slab stood on the edge in about 
an angle of 45° with the side of the mountain, and its farther 
end against the rock we had to reach : from the side of 
the mountain just beyond this flat rock, and covering a front 
larger than the face of the remote rock, a torrent plunged 
from the mountain, the action of which appeared to have per- 
forated the rock standing on the edge, and an opening, which 
appeared larger than the dimensions of a puncheon, gave a 
projecting spout, which fell in a beautiful cascade on the 
north side of the main rock, while the rest of the Chiquita 
that descended the mountain, found its way into the Chama 
on the south side. We had to pass to this rock, upon this 
narrow ledge, above this formidable sluice and cascade* 
The officer, in charge of the escort, had placed himself in a 
position which enabled him to see us approach this place, 
and he saw us pass it almost without an emotion, while he 
acknowledged that he trembled for our safety on that pas- 
sage. I alighted and measured that end of the ledge next 
to the rock outside, and found it eleven inches ; it was 
not, however, throughout so narrow, but it was not much 
broader in any part. After the congratulations of our mili- 
tary companion, we moved for Estanques, within sight was 
one of those modes of passing rivers by suspension, which is 
called a Tarabita. There are many forms ; this across the 
Chama was a mile north-east of Estanques, and above the 
point where the river abruptly turns off at a right angle 
with its previous course, and travels north to the lake of 
Maracaibo. A stout rope of ox-hides attached to a very 
large tree on the right bank, was carried to the left bank, 
and attached to a large timber artificially fixed in the ground, 
and having in front a mass of rocks piled or placed as a 
buttress ; two rings of the bejuco, of the size of a horse 
collar, were woven loose on the rope, a small line from each 
side was attached to each of those rings, and a basket-like 
machine was slung to that ring Avhich was on the side, from 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 317 

which the passage was to be made, the passenger placed himself 
sitting or lying down in this suspended basket, and at a signal 
from the other side, the ring was drawn along the rope to 
the opposite side ; they had a capstan-like windlass, on the 
left side, which was to tighten the main rope, which is suffix 
ciently strong to bear the transportation of a man and horse, or 
two or three persons at a time. Bolivar crossed a division 
of troops at this Tarabita, and the bridge of four trees thrown 
across the abyss, where the Chama enters the valley, was 
constructed under his direction, the Spaniards having de- 
stroyed a Tarabita that stood formerly where this temporary- 
bridge of trees now is. 

I have been often surprised that no stand was made at this 
extraordinary pass by either party during the war. The 
Chama is not to be waded over, as its stream is not only 
deep but impetuous, and a few men posted at either end of 
the shelf-path might defy twenty times their number. We 
reached Estanques before noon, and resolved to sleep there. 
This Estanques is not a public town, but a private Hacien- 
da, or cacao estate, and the steward, in charge of it, conduct- 
ed us to the best apartment, in a very good brick two- story 
house. There was a range of huts, and some scattered in 
front of the house, and it struck us at once that, although 
there were numerous negro women, that there was not one 
man to be seen, and there were no other inhabitants. These 
poor people were slaves, and not embraced by the law 
which gave immediate emancipation ; the men, upon joining 
the public standard, became immediately soldiers ; a spright- 
ly girl, who offered her services, with some fruit, stated that 
the men all left them and turned soldiers, and she spoke it as 
if she resented it. I asked why she did not go too ; she said, 
she wished she was a man, and she would not belong at Es- 
tanques. She confessed her situation there had nothing 
cruel or unfair, but then, said she, one would like to see 
one's father, or one's brother — or — and she turned suddenly 



318 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

round and disappeared, leaving the idea of— one's sweetheart 
to be guessed at— and did not Nature speak for her ? 

We now made our mess common to our brother soldier^ 
which before we had no opportunity to do. The stock laid 
in at Exido was good and ample ; and we contrived to pur- 
chase here for the use of the soldiers some carfie seca, or dry 
meat ; and we added to our own cookery some sweet yuccas 
and apios, and the best potatoes we had yet seen in Colom- 
bia. We had among our purchases at Exido some very fine 
rice in a neat cloth bag, of which we very fortunately got the 
whole, though it would have been more useful between Tu- 
cuyo and Merida. The common hedge trees here were 
orange, and loaded with delicious fruit ; we ate and slept 
comfortably. 

On the 3d of January, at half past five in the morning, we 
moved, the escort having preceded us an hour, as we delayed 
to have coffee and chocolate, with some rice and fruit, and 
meant to carry some dressed rice, which, with sugar and 
some nutmegs, mace, or cloves, which we had, we could ap- 
pease the appetite without halting. Our route lay through 
some cane brakes, and sandy-bottomed rivulets in a multi- 
tude of windings, where no stranger vv^ould expect to find a 
road. These numerous rills have their sources in the moun- 
tains whose skirts we were traversing, and contribute to the 
little river Estanques, at the foot of the Hacienda, which, 
after flowing a mile, unites in the stream of the Chama. We 
pursued this vegetable labyrinth for more than three hours, 
on the margin of the Estanques for a short time, then cros- 
sing it on a well constructed and raised platform of plank, 
serving as a bridge, with a good firm hand-rail on each side, 
ascending thro'igh forests, whose sometimes prostrate trees 
arrested our progress and compelled to a circuit. At four 
o'clock, this desultory up and down hill, cool moist air, and 
then close and hot, gave us a relish for food as Avell as tem- 
porary rest ; our sergeant* who had not the use of his speech 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 319 

SO much since we had the escort, now coming where he 
knew the people ; — the officer, with a trusty sergeant and two 
men, whom he caused to be mounted at an adjacent Haci- 
enda, passed in advance to reconnoitre. I have taken no 
notice of the nexvs which every passenger on the road could 
give us, as to what Morales had done, what he was doing, 
and what he meant to do ; that he was, according to a dozen 
persons, at a dozen different places at the same day. Though 
all these stories were contradictory, yet some one of them 
might be true ; and as, among other places, the newsmon- 
gers said he had possession of Bayladores, and it was our 
next halting- place, the officer had very judiciously deter- 
mined to reconnoitre, and the sergeant led us up a steep as= 
cent, where no one could expect to find a human habitation, 
but it led into a very fine trapeche^ that is, a sugar- mill and 
plantation ; here we had some refreshment, and among other 
fruit the guava, of which I had not tasted since I had been 
in Hindustan, abundant fine oranges, and the finest pine-ap- 
pies I had ever seen. 

We had rested and regained our elasticity after an hour's 
stay, and having the river Bayladores on our left, we moved 
forward at half past twelve o'clock, much gratified by the ci= 
vility we experienced, and which the people did not deem 
enough to gratify ourselves ; they caused some bundles of 
young sugar-cane to be placed in charge of the sergeant, for 
all our mules. At half past three we saw the town of Bayla- 
dores, at the foot of the mountain side we were descending, 
and we found it totallv deserted. 



339 



CHAPTER XXIL 

Old Bayladores, account of— deserted by inhabitants— no alcalde — muleteers-" 
fears of the Godas — alcalde appears — vidette from Colonel Gomez — account 
of the Spanish division— part from our accomplished officer and escort— Ce- 
bada — -beautiful country and fine cultivation — New Bayladores — accept a 
beckon to walk in from a venerable planter — a Frenchman — unites the nation- 
al politeness with Colombian hospitality — perpetual progression of crops — 
husbandry, views of— move on — reports on the road — cold night — ascend the 
paramo — fatiguing route—met by a detachment of cavalry sent to escort us — 
Colonel Gomez and suite — fine horses— reach Gritja — alight at the governor's 
• — his apprehensions — and kindness — aspect of Gritja — zeal and effective pro- 
tection afforded by the colonel — kind precautions against his proposed stra- 
tagem — and its success — depart by a circuitous route — escort of cavalry and 
infantry — gain the high road — the Spaniards abandon their outposts — move in 
security — meet Colonel Gomez — success of his stratagem — and his amusing 
vivacity in relation to it — anecdotes of him — El Cobre posthouse — mode of 
business and accommodations there — Oriental resemblances again — peons — 
mode of disseminating information — information for travellers by the same 
route. 

Bayladores is not a compact town with regular or 
intersecting streets, like towns generally in Colombia ; from 
the hill by which the road leads, a spacious and verdant 
sloping plain descends to the south a good broad mile, and 
in some places more ; the river of the name meanders in a 
much deeper bed with a steep bank on the north side and 
foot of the Sierra, which is washed by the south side of the 
ample stream ; the aspect of the mountain being north, it 
appears gloomy as it is elevated, and the forests by which it 
is covered, during the greater part of the day, have the aspect 
of a flat bog rather than of trees of one hundred to one hun- 
dred and fifty feet elevation. It is not a uniform front, but 
shows deep recesses, and in fact numerous gaps or open- 
ings ; it was in this direction and through those cliffs and 
clefts the population had retired, carrying with them all their 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 3S1 

live and dead stock, and every moveable diing. The town 
occupies the upper or northern side of the north bank ; and 
the houses stand detached, but presenting their fronts in a 
sort of semicircle to the plain. As we descended towards the 
plain we could overlook several of the houses — but the si- 
lence of the grave was there — not a cow, goat, hog, horse, 
mule, nor ass — the cocks and hens, the turkeys and the ducks, 
everywhere else so noisy and numerous — had emigrated 
too ; all appeared to have died , or gone to roost. The 
houses, as we came in front, were stockaded in a most ex- 
cellent military style, the stakes with sharpened angular 
points ; well laced and braced together ; adv^htage '/as 
taken of the pita walls, which were easily perforated, and 
loop-holes for musquetry were apparent on all sides — but 
those who made the stockades and the loop-hcles, were not 
there — they were, God knows where, in the mountains, 
looking down, perhaps, for the enemy, whom they were 
numerous enough^ — if they were cannibals — to devour. We 
took possession of the town-house, for we looked in vain 
for the alcalde, perhaps he thought it better to go with the 
people than to be taken by the Spaniards. The hired mu- 
leteers, who had gossipped a little on the road with the 
people at the sugar- mill, manifested some alarm at the 
hyperbole retailed by the newsmakers — they have a great 
deal of Orientalism in their commonest stories, the language 
favours it from its flexibility, and perhaps the climate may 
quicken the imagination ; they talked of returning imme- 
diately ; but, though our sense of danger was not so acute, 
we were not disposed to be left without any means of move- 
ment, and, at my suggestion, the officer of the escort in- 
formed them that they could not depart until we were pro- 
vided with fresh mules ; and advised them to go in search 
of the alcalde, or mules for hire, to replace their own, and 
they accordingly proceeded, and next day found the alcalde. 
The officer of the escort, who was expert and well adapted 

41. 



3SS VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

to the service, had confidential soldiers, whom he divested 
of all things military, and dispatched to reconnoitre, which 
they executed faithfully, and returned the next day also. 

The alcalde visited us with an aspect most unmagisterial 
and dolorous, and even while he addressed us seemed to look 
round from the habit of fear, and while he laboured to con- 
ceal his apprehensions, only betrayed his chicken-hearted- 
ness. It required the explosion of a bomb to awaken his 
senses; and his first information was that he knew not 
where to procure mules for us, though he had expected us 
for a week ; but we insisted on his compliance with the or- 
ders he had received, which our commanding officer further 
enforced. The alcalde believed that the Spaniards would 
return, and said he had advices to that effect ; that Colonel 
Gomez, commandant at Gritja, was collecting a force, and 
was also expected. Our officer's information was difterent 
and more correct ; the Spaniards, under Colonel Valdez, 
had taken a position at Las Puentes, beyond Gritja, and 
Colonel Gomez was at Gritja with a corps of observation. 
We were, therefore, obliged to wait at Bayladores till mules 
could be procured ; the sergeant, acquainted with the coun- 
try, foraged and provided ample subsistence ; we em- 
ployed the time of delay in changing our linen, and new 
arranging our baggage against our departure. The sergeant 
procured fruit, poultry, and other things, and we were well 
rested and fared tolerably by the time the alcalde arrived 
with the alcalde of New Bayladores, a man of spirit and 
character : a suite of mules came after them. We had, 
however, so arranged our baggage during our stay, that we 
had provided places to conceal our trunks in the event of 
the approach of the enemy, and I had passed the river and 
made myself acquainted with the paths to the mountain more 
than two miles on the other side. It was, however, better as it 
turned out. The road was clear, and a vidette, from Colonel 
Gomez, brought us intimation that the road was open through 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 323 

the forest of wild boars, and all the way to Gritja, and an 
escort of cavalry would meet us at a position designated, and 
conduct us across the paramo. We were now to separate 
from our agreeable fellow-traveller and his escort, who as- 
sured us he would with pleasure accompany us to Bogota 
if his orders permitted, very kindly took leave, and we parted 
impressed with grateful sentiments and merited esteem; 
his conduct was perfectly the soldier ; gentlemanly, amiable, 
and cool ; his understanding cultivated ; he was a soldier 
from sentiment, and acquainted with his profession ; but 
was anxious that peace should enable him to return to the 
cultivation of a small estate he possessed, and — I suspected a 
more tender motive. We had not been able to account for 
the change of conduct and deportment in the alcalde till we 
were about to separate ; the officer informed us that the vi- 
dette of Colonel Gomez had rebuked him for detaining us, 
and that it was this which had given him so much sudden 
alacrity ; the mules were at our door earlier than we required 
them; eggs and poultry, fruit and forage, for which he 
would receive no payment, but supplied in abundance ; in the 
gratification of being able to move secure, and, having no- 
thing to desire now, we soon forgot the alcalde of Old Bay- 
ladores. We moved forward, at ten o'clock, and were met 
on the way by the alcalde of Cebada, who also came to escort 
us. We ascended the mountain on the right of the valley, 
and had a delightful day and charming prospect for many 
leagues. 

The country through which we were now passing recalled 
to mind, from their resemblance in verdure and cultivation, 
those of Chester, Lancaster, and Montgomery counties, 
Pennsylvania, in July ; the gradual slopes, and rich fields of 
grain; fences indeed were wanting to complete the resem- 
blance ; but the waving barley and wheat looked as lively 
and luxuriant ; and the maize was rich and beautiful. The 
points of sight were yet too remote for distinctness, the pic- 



8S4 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ture was a mass, in which the parts were not minutely dis- 
cernible, but by the tints, and the occasional motion of a 
very gentle breeze, which was very acceptably shared with 
us in our progress. 

We reached New Bayladores before it was noon ; its ap- 
pearance had newness and neatness in the external, and pros- 
perity appeared all around it ; the houses were all white- 
washed, and the tiles all appeared as new as if the whole had 
been just built; which appeared the more remarkable from 
a comparison with the older town, and the recent presence 
of the Spaniards, who rarely spared any thing that appeared 
to prosper. I noticed the contrast to the alcaide, who only re= 
plied by that universal substitute for a speech, a silent shake 
of the head ; I did not know whether I should take it in Sir 
Christopher Hattoti's sense, in the Critic, or in our Indian 
interpretation — but concluded that it meant to say prosperity 
and neatness was the usual effect of industry judiciously 
pursued, and a good police ; perhaps he meant more than it 
was prudent to speak, for he shook hands with us very cor- 
dially when we set forward, the sergeant once more, with 
his grenadier's cap and his lance, leading the van. 

About noon a well-looking stone house, of two stories, 
with verandahs above, invited our attention, and the venera- 
ble grey-haired owner beckoned an invitation to turn our 
mules inward, and, as the sun shone pretty warm, we com- 
plied, and our mules in a few minutes were wallowing in 
good fodder. The old gentleman conducted us to the ve- 
randah in front, where I had my hammock slung in such a 
position as to overlook the valley and the mountains to a con- 
siderable distance ; the scite was happily selected ; our venera- 
ble host was a Frenchman, above seventy ; he entered into 
discourse with the affability of his own country, and accom- 
panied by the taste and hospitality of Colombia ; fine sponge- 
cake, no better could be had in Paris, cream- cheese, fresh 
and well made, as if from Philadelphia ; mead, not to be ex- 



VISIT TO COLOMUIA. 325 

celled any where, brisk as champaign ; and abundance of 
sweetmeats and fruit, were handed round repeatedly. We 
had directed some fowls to be fricaseed, but the coeinero had 
loitered and talked, and we looked at the pictures around us so 
long, that it became too late to wait for them ; it was the fault 
of our own servants, who had, naturally enough, attended to 
good things present, rather than to the preparation, which, 
to be sure, was unnecessary, and I left them to follow, pur- 
suing my journey. This old gentleman had been settled in 
that position more than forty years ; his manners, and his 
example, to the cultivators, and his neutrality, in every vi- 
cissitude, had saved him from entire ruin, and the earth and 
the climate, which, never ceasing from production, made 
him rich, who spent very little compared with his income. 

While resting on my hammock I could discern the pro- 
gress of cultivation, which was more contiguous than in the 
position from which the fields were first descried ; and, upon 
particular inquiry, I found that every process of agriculture 
was in operation at the same time — at the east extremity the 
mules were bearing off the harvests to the depots behind the 
dwelling ; stacks were on the patch of ten or twenty acres, 
next adjoining — another patch displayed the rows of sheaves, 
in another the reapers were at work, and the young people 
tying them — farther on, the golden harvest tempted the 
reaper — and still farther west, the waving grain had yet its 
tinge of pale green — and farther still the tint was more deep, 
it was the grain in the blade — another patch appeared to 
show like green threads upon a cake of chocolate ; and next 
appeared the paisano scattering the grain, followed by a range 
of mules abreast, with that harrow which instinctive reason 
provides, in the thorny brambles of the thicket ; last patch of 
all, the ploughman with his rude formed plough, though 
then too distant to be particularly described — this was the 
rotation of crops — and upon a soil which never had any 
other manure than the rains and dews of heaven and its o\\'\?. 



326 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

natural composition ; the progression unceasing and unin- 
terrupted ; unless the hand of man forgot or neglected to do 
his duty. But the want of roads to transport those rich har- 
vests rendered their mercantile value small- — wheat could be 
had here for about a real and a half, or fifteen cents the 
bushel, barley for ten ; pease, vetches, and beans, for a few 
cents. The people on the road, as we advanced, were not 
yet apprised that the Spaniards had moved to the borders of 
the Cinega^ and we were so sure of a contradictory account 
from every successive person and dwelling, that we made it 
a matter of amusement to send the sergeant and Vincent to 
make enquiries, and then quieted their apprehensions by 
stating the direct information we possessed ; among other 
things we were told that no person was permitted to proceed 
to Gritja — that the people at Gritja had declared for the royal 
cause, and hoisted the royal standard, delivering up their 
governor, who was in the Spanish camp : there was one part 
of this story true, but it was not a volunteer business — a 
brother-in-law of the civil governor of Gritja, who was a 
steady royalist, had formed a stratagem, and succeeded in seiz- 
ing and carrying off his republican brother-in-law, the gover- 
nor ; there had been a family dispute upon some division of 
property by marriage, and the royal partizan now settled the 
lawsuit, by demanding forty thousand dollars as a ransom 
for his prisoner, which the governor himself afterwards told 
us he had paid, our quarters being with him on our arrival 
at Gritja. 

At half past five we reached a farm-house, where we were 
received with civility, but not without apprehensions, which 
were soon dissipated by our discourse ; the place was at the 
foot of a paramo, the air cold and biting, and our appetites 
pretty keen ; we procured some potatoes, had some chickens 
fricaseed, and some good chocolate ; all the doors and win- 
dows were closed as much as possible, but the night was 
very uncomfortable with all the clothing we could apply. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 327 

The valley at this place, though deep in relation to the pa- 
ramo at the foot of which it extends, is about forty leagues 
from north to south and south-south-west, is widest at the 
north, and narrow to the foot of the paramo, from which we 
were not more than twenty minutes ride distant. We rose 
late, in consequence of our bad night's rest, and did not get in 
motion till ten o'clock. 

On the 4th, being Sunday, we travelled up the paramo, 
on which there was the first appearance of any thing like a 
really easy road since we left the valley of Aragua; we reach- 
ed the summit at noon, and commenced a tedious and ha- 
zardous descent, from the steepness of the mountain and the 
badness of the footway, winding through wilds, and shut out 
from sunshine by the closeness and elevation of the forest 
trees on the lower range of the mountain ; pools and quag- 
mires difficult to pass were constantly retarding our journey, 
and tiring our mules and ourselves. 

We were soon met by a party of cavalry, under a lieute- 
nant, sent by Colonel Gomez to meet us, and, a few miles 
farther in advance, the colonel himself, of whom we had 
heard much, with a suite of six young officers, in gay, gau- 
dy-coloured, fancy military dresses, which had no other 
uniformity than that they were sleeve jackets and loose pan- 
taloons, and Italian caps ; but of all colours of the rainbow : 
bluejackets with yellow pantaloons, yellow jackets with red 
pantaloons, and jackets with green, white, red or yellow ; 
the caps were neat and fanciful, but alike varied as their fea- 
thers were contrasted; they rode the best horses I had hi- 
therto seen, about sixteen hands high, with handsome short 
heads, neat short swelling ears, large, bright, prominent eyes, 
a well-formed, full, and robust arching neck, broad breast, a 
tapering leg and thin shank, clean fetlocks, neat grey hoofs, 
rounded haunches and buttocks, and tails that stood out in a 
bunch, and spread like the water from a fountain almost to 
the ground, and with which they could be effectually pro- 



328 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

tected from winged insects if there were any, ahd, being thus 
unmutilated, were therefore spirited but fine-tempered. 

It was half after four when we came in sight of Gritja ; 
we did not enter the town, which was in the bottom of the 
valley, but passed to the left on the side of the sierra, and 
alighted in the patio of the civil governor's house, who now 
came out to receive us, and who afforded us every civility. 
This was the gentleman who had been ransomed only two 
days before ; he told us his story with natural pathos, and 
indicated very sensibly that he was not perfectly confident 
of being yet secure ; his family had fled to the interior 
mountains, with their cattle, and all they could carry. A 
pair of horses stood always saddled in the patio^ ready to 
prevent this Spanish brother-in-law from partitioning the pro- 
perty a second time. 

A good plain dinner of better than common dried beef, 
with potatoes and onions, seasoned with spice, made an ex- 
cellent Irish stew — white wheaten bread, good vegetable 
greens, sallads, and fruit — some guarapa prepared by domes- 
tics for private use, much superior to that of the posadas ; 
and, as the Spaniards had carried off all his wine, the gover- 
nor, who had some careful servants, had preserved a few fine 
cases of liquor, from which he brought his garde-de-vin of 
aguardiente ; I took some with fine spring water. Though 
we were not in the town of Gritja, we could, as the sailors 
say, " chuck a biscuit into it" from the rear of the gover- 
nor's house. The town, which lay directly beneath our 
view, perhaps three hundred yards below us ; our position 
immediately over the south-east angle, the lines of the streets 
being north and south, and crossing east and \vest a spacious 
square in the centre, about eight streets in the breadth and 
ten or twelve in the length. The whole town handsomely 
tiled and of one story high — a handsome church stood, as 
usual, conspicuously above the rest. But the silence of 
death prevailed in the town, not a living thing was to be 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 329 

seen, the whole population, reputed to be about nine thou- 
sand, had fled to the Paramos in the south, which, from our 
position, appeared piled one over the other on our left till 
lost in the clouds, or diminished into narrow grey lines of 
equivocal light. 

The colonel, whose animal spirits were of a very different 
temperament from the poor governor, who had laughed and 
chatted with us on the way, on our arrival had resigned me 
to the civil authority, while he, and his fine young men, be- 
stowed their attentions on Lieutenant Bache and his sister ; 
and, after some pleasant repartees with the governor, he 
contrived to detach me from the company, and urged that 
he did not choose to say any thing to alarm the Senorita, 
but thought fit to apprise me of our situation, and his inten- 
tions. The Spaniards, under Valdez, he said were about 
seven hundred strong, posted at La Puente, on the high 
road over which our course lay ; his care was to protect us, 
and prevent the Spanish marauders from molesting us ; that 
he had already made up his mind on the plan he should 
pursue, and we might rely on our safety for the night ; but, 
lest the Senorita should be alarmed at the noise he meant to 
make, he thought fit to let me know, that, about two hours 
after midnight, his whole force would be in motion, and 
that we must not mistake his bugles for those of the enemy ; 
that an officer of influence, to whom he particularly intro- 
duced me, with explanations afterwards, would accompany 
us, with an escort of infantry and cavalry ; that our road 
would be circuitous and remote from the highway, and that 
we should be conducted clear of the enemy's pickets and 
every danger. The colonel and suite, after spending some 
pleasant time, departed ; and taking our sergeant with him, 
put six fresh mules under his charge, with two muleteers, 
whom he directed to obey our orders implicitly. The mules 
were placed in the coral^ with forage of molocha in abun- 
dance ; we directed to have the baggage packed, and all 

42 



330 YISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ready by two o'clock in the morning, and went to rest in 
perfect security ; about two o'clock, indeed, the clangor of 
bugles was heard, not at a single point collected, but at se- 
veral points near and distant; appearing to sound and an- 
swer, and to sound and answer again at different places ; 
it was too dark to discern distincdy, but the cessation of 
the motion of objects below, and the gradual decrease of 
shrillness, showed that the bugles were hastily passing to 
the north of us ; according to the impression of the sound 
of the bugles, which never ceased while we were in hearing 
distance, they were behind the mountains to the north before 
we could put ourselves in motion to proceed south-west. 
The governor, who had given up his quarters for our con- 
venience, and staid at an adjoining house, appeared with 
some baskets of fruit to be placed on our baggage ; and 
displaying every kindness, praying for our safety from the 
barbarous Goths (Godas). Our commandant of the escort 
was on the ground also before us, and, after moving about a 
mile with him, we found a detachment of infantry, and in 
the valley to which we descended southward and eastward, 
through tremendous ravines and precipices, we saw the ca- 
valry receive orders how to move on our right ; and now, 
proceeding up a deep narrow glen, we wound round to the 
south, and at length to the south-west, ascending. The 
commanding officer, who minutely knew every spot of these 
valleys, intimated that there were some Godas in the line of 
our movement, and he pushed forward in advance. Two 
fine young men, out of uniform, accompanied him, each 
carrying a loaded musquetoon on their saddle bows ; they 
dashed up the side of a steep mound, and passing through 
a thick hedge, a well-looking house, surrounded by hedges 
of beautiful shrubbery, presented itself; he rode up to the 
door, and I followed him ; the young men prepared, with 
their musquetoons adjusted, to meet any assault or punish 
insult : the house, however, was closed, its tenants had 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 331 

eloped. Some excellent poultry were taken, but the value 
was thrown into a window, and we passed on through a 
winding path, crossed several very steep hills, thick forests, 
and some intricate mazes of rank vegetation. About one 
o'clock we emerged from the forest upon the summit of a 
beautiful hill, covered with a close-nipt velvet turf, as if 
sheep had sheared it ; the cavalry had taken a different track 
from ours, in order to apprize us on our approach to this 
summit, which overlooked the main road, and appeared in 
front of the position which had been occupied by the most 
advanced pickets of the Spaniards the night preceding. Our 
infantry here reposed on the side of the hill, and the horse- 
men soon after appeared in view on the road below, over 
which our route lay. We immediately descended, and on 
the very spot where the Spanisli cooks had lighted their 
fires, which were still smoking, we took leave of our ac- 
complished lieutenant and his escort, and he pursued his 
route by the common way back to Gritja, wdiile we conti- 
nued our march in the opposite way. 

After I had been some days in Bogota, and while listen- 
ing to a debate in the senate, the lively commandant of Grit- 
ja, Colonel Gomez, stood for a moment by my side, seized 
my hand and pressed it ; we retired into the corridor sponta- 
neously ; I to thank him for his goodness, and he to explain 
his success. His plan, as he before indicated, was to pro- 
duce such an alarm in the camp at La Puente, as to oblige 
Valdez to call in his pickets, by which means our passage 
was doubly secure ; he therefore made the inordinate cla- 
mour in the night, with a view that the emissaries of Val- 
dez in the neighbourhood should carry the news to the camp 
of his being in motion northward, so as to lead him to think 
the Colombians meant to attack his rear, and thus menacing 
him in that quarter, he would draw away his pickets from 
the side we were to pass. The effect was such as he had 
calculated. Fighting with four hundred, opposed to between 



33S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

six and seven hundred, was out of his contemplation, and 
he carried no infantry beyond a pass upon which he could 
fall back and defend himself; but, added he, you have ren- 
dered us a great service, and the people at Gritja consider 
your daughter as one of their guardian angels ; for, before 
your arrival, Gritja was every day annoyed, and we had not 
a force adequate to drive the Spaniards away until you came. 
The number of our bugles, and the noise we made with them 
in so many directions, had so much effect upon the Spa- 
niards, that they decamped from La Puente the next day, 
and our good people attribute it all to the Senorita^ your 
daughter, taking from me all the merit of my bugle-horns. 

Colonel Gomez was a handsome mulatto, with crisped 
hair, his stature good, and limbs neat, but his complexion 
was rather fair or cream-coloured than yellow, his counte- 
nance open and of an unceasing gaiety. When we met first 
we halted some time under a shade, waiting the return of a 
horseman whom he had sent in advance, and being mounted 
on a fine mule, and well accoutred, he began to chat and 
joke with the grace and vivacity of a Frenchman ; asked a 
thousand amusing but no impertinent questions ; talked of our 
country and his ov/n ; of the two revolutions ; the battles, 
and the blessings which they assured ; and said, Colombia 
had never been free if North America had not set the ex- 
ample. He had signalized himself in a temporary command 
at Coro, where he had been, he said, abandoned, but had re- 
solved to save his corps ; and though he knew he was incom- 
petent to resist with success, he made a show of resistance^ 
and enabled himself to enter upon a capitulation which might 
not otherwise be granted ; but the Spanish officer dictated a 
treaty, which contained conditions over which Colonel Go- 
mez had no controul, and which belonged to the Congress 
alone. He intimated the fact to the Spanish commander, 
who would not change his predeterminations. Gomez sign- 
ed ; extricated himself and his force ; explained the circum 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 333 

Stances and the views which induced him to acquiesce in the 
dictation of the convention by the Spaniard ; all that was 
conformable to the law of nations was ratified and fulfilled 
— the unauthorized dictation annulled. The reputation of 
Gomez had been high before as a partizan officer ; here his 
intelligence marked him out for higher trust, and he only- 
wanted a force equal in number to Valdez, or within a hun- 
dred of him, he said, to give a good account of him, which I 
verily believe. 

At half past four o'clock we reached the casa de postas at 
El Cobre, supposed to be so named from a copper mine in 
the adjacent sierra. This post-house was a mere hut, of about 
twelve feet long by nine broad, yet a partition separated the 
interior, forming one room of seven feet, and another of about 
five feet breadth. The room of five feet was the identical apart- 
ment of the administrador de las postas^ or the post-office. The 
eaves of this thatched casa extended a little more than a yard 
beyond the outer clay-composed wall. The line of direction 
of its length was north and south ; the door entrance was on 
the west side into the larger room, and a window, or hole in 
the wall, of two feet square on the east side, was the avenue 
of business for this national establishment. Huts of this kind 
are established throughout the country where towns are re- 
mote from each other, at such distances as the form of the 
road, flat or steep, rough or smooth on the route, renders 
convenient for the performance of a journey by the couriers, 
in a period which corresponds with the celerity of transport- 
ation, and the capacity of the couriers to travel. In every 
respect it is the prototype of the daxvk of Hindustan, and by a 
singular coincidence of terms, the man who carries the pack- 
et of letters in Colombia and in Hindustan, is called a peon^ 
and he carries his charge, when of the same size, in the very 
same way ; he also moves indifferent to weather, rain or sun- 
shine, dark or light ; when he reaches the end of his stage, 
be wipes himself of dust, rain, or sweat, and goes to sleep, 



334 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

awakes, dresses, and cats his meal, and goes to sleep again, 
till the correo^ which he is to bear in return, is ready to be 
dispatched for the place whence he came the preceding day. 
El Cobre^ notwithstanding the dimensions of the casa and 
its camera de occupacion^ is what we call a central point, or 
distributing office, as many routes meet there ; but I seldom 
saw a mail much more bulky than a common pocket-book. 
Since the republic has been established, however, the addi- 
tion of official dispatches has been more constant and fre- 
quent, and their weight more heavy ; printed official books, 
laws, and an increasing number of newspapers, swell their 
magnitude, and increase their number ; more than one peon, 
therefore, is employed on the same route, and on the same 
day, who start at different times: the government papers are 
first dispatched; the habitual distinction of^r^-a^from small 
men, gives the preference of dispatch to the packets of great 
men ; the newspapers have the next, and the small men or 
the unknown are the last in rotation ; hwX. peons are dispatch- 
ed in every direction as soon as a packet is ready ; a way- 
bill is prepared, and its duplicate filed ; an open paper is car- 
ried for the inspection of the municipal and military officers 
on the route, who sign it successively as it reaches them, at 
once to serve as a check, by which the orders they receive 
are acknowledged, and to authenticate the paper to the next 
magistrate. The government has employed this flying dis- 
patch with infinite advantage during the revolution, in circu- 
lating popular information, victories, and other useful mat- 
ters. On many occasions duplicates and triplicates were thus 
issued, and intendants, commandants, and alcaldes, were re- 
quired to multiply and circulate copies, and to post them up 
at churches and other public places. The provincial magis- 
trates use them in the same way within their jurisdiction ; a 
governor writes such an event has taken place ; such persons 
are on the road ; and I suspect that it was by this means 
our approach was so constantly anticipated, and such sig- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 335 

nal hospitality and attention bestowed on us so uniformly 
and unexpectedly. 

The climate at El Cobre is not very warm. The camera 
of the administrador was by no means too large for himself — • 
the trunks of my young companions were therefore placed in 
the camera mayor, and by means of their blankets and cloaks 
converted into a dormitory ; as for myself I resolved, with San- 
cho Panza, to hacer rosea del galgo — to make the best I could 
of it, and hung my hammock beneath the eaves of the casa : 
the sergeant, kindly conceiving that he could serve better as 
a curtain than the open air, hung his hammock outside inine. 
The mules were attached by their halters, and suitable long 
ropes, which are among the necessaries of the traveller, to 
stakes fixed in a circle, so as to afford grazing ground to 
each, and prevent straying — and the muleteers and servants 
slept in sight, each upon one cow-hide, and, if occasion re- 
quired, sheltered by another, in sight of the mules, to prevent 
stealing — which sometimes happens. 

The young folks found that their dormitory, in connex- 
ion with the floor, was not as comfortable as their hammocks, 
for, although there were neither flies nor mosquitoes, the 
ants are very numerous in many parts of the country, and 
troublesome in such circumstances. I slept as comfortably as 
I wished, though the curtain furnished by the intervention 
of the sergeant, I have no doubt, very much mitigated the ^. 
coldness of the night. /"^ 



336 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

Moving magazines — Commissary of subsistence — army in bivouac — civility of 
the troops — camp fare and recreations — the Post-house of Challomar — English 
officer — General Urdaneta — politeness — unexpected adventure — a neiv light — 
hospitality — limits to travellers — move for Tariba — sublime disorder of the 
Cordillera — avoid San Cristoval — refresh at Tariba — reach Capacho — popu- 
lation singular scite — ants — leave Capacho — geology — sublime aspect of 

the mountains — new aspects from the Sierra — exhilarating atmosphere — ef- 
fects on the vision and imagination- — lag behind — fatiguing descent to the 
Tachira — appearance like a river of milk — old boundary revolutionized — ■ 
Antonio de Cucuta — well built town — industrious people — change of curren- 
cy — knowledge requisite for travellers — currency pernicious to the Industrious 
classes — a tax in favour of the cunning — policy calls for a remedy — Rcsario 
de Cucuta — well lodged— fertile valleys around — the mountain aspects savage 
and wild. 

We found it impracticable to move before nine o'clock, 
but by ten we were at the summit or lofty side of the sum- 
mit of the Paramo ; where, though the wind from the south- 
east was piercing, the track was good. We had passed 
some very numerous droves of the finest horned cattle I had 
seen in any part of the world, grazing on the natural pastures, 
where the forests had left spaces of great extent unencroach- 
ed upon. We had bivouaced and slept near one of these 
droves, and so near as to hear the drovers occasionally laugh- 
ing and singing as they watched ; this day we met a still 
more numerous drove, and an European gentleman in black, 
well mounted and equipped, accompanied them. An ex- 
change of courtesies was natural in the midst of an immense 
forest, and in the lofty depths of the Cordillera ; those who 
have not had experience of such incidental meetings, cannot 
well conceive the pleasure they produce ; strangers are in 
an instant acquainted, and their conversation would seem to 
be the result of years of intercourse. This gentleman was 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 337 

the commissary of subsistence to the army of General Ur- 
daneta,, who, he said, we should meet at the foot of the Pa- 
ramo : he ivas going in advance, and there are my maga- 
zines transporting themselves^ as he jocosely observed, and 
that tins kind of commissariat saved a great deal of expense 
compared vi'ith the wagon train of European armies : in 
fact, the army had no other baggage but the mules which 
bore ammunition, which was secured in water-proof casks, 
covered with cow-hides. The system was excellent. A 
calculation of the average consumption of beef was first 
made according to the force to be supplied to the army and 
the followers ; droves were, upon these returns, drawn from 
the plains, and detached to grazing grounds on the proposed 
line of march, where the cattle became fat and heavy before 
they were required for subsistence. 

About two o'clock, descending through that part of the 
mountain called the Forest of PFild Boars^ we perceived the 
smoke of several fires rising above the forest trees, and the 
monotonous rattle or cadence of the macara, a sort of time 
instrument, to which the paisanos dance; of which some 
notice will be taken when we reach Cucuta, We soon dis- 
cerned the corps d'^armee of General Urdaneta, in bivouac 
on both sides of the road, and in the woods adjacent. We 
had to ride close by several of their fires, and found their 
habits and manners so kind and civil, that we could not 
but compare them, and to their advantage, with soldiers we 
had seen elsewhere, whose rudeness and vulgar impertinence 
had no imitators here. Three or four saplings, tied about 
four or five feet from the ground and extended below, form- 
ed the area of the kitchen ; a brisk fire between served for 
boiling, roasting, or broiling ; and the companies, formed 
into squads or messes, distributed the duties of the mess 
between them. Cattle, in suitable numbers to the returns, 
were slaughtered at convenient points, and the portion of 
each mess supplied and carried to the fires ; and, as tlie 

43 



388 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Utensils are few and rude, the repast is easily prepared and 
disposed of; though here, and in all places where subsistence 
of vegetables is abundant, soups, yuccas, aracatchas, apios, 
and the never-satiating plantain, composed messes often such 
as would gratify an epicure. Those squads which happened 
to dispatch their meal first, were at different points recreating 
themselves, and it was among these we heard the macara^ 
while we now saw males and females dancing a galeron or 
a holera; in other points the guitar, scarcely audible, but yet 
tinkling beneath the huge forest trees ; and the song, in 
which Colombia and Bolivar never failed to form the burden. 

The spectacle was highly interesting ; and, as many of 
the fires were lighted on the road, we were obliged in cour- 
tesy to make a sort of wandering march, which, being more 
slow than it would have been with a clear path, afforded us 
an opportunity of seeing more and seeing better than if we 
had travelled in a right line. The forest trees were of an 
immense height ; and, whether they grew so naturally, or 
the soldiers had cut away the lower branches for fuel, the 
stems appeared in all their magnitude, and the under space 
clear, but with a dim light, as if a curtain were spread above. 
The soldiers every foot of the way were cheerful, civil, and 
good-natured, and often cleared the path for our passage^ 
exchanging jokes with our never-tiring sergeant. 

About half a mile below the bivouac stood the Casa de las 
Pdstas of Challomar, with its longest front along the valley 
and its gabel end to the road : it was exactly such a house 
as that of El Cobre, but was surrounded by crouds of mili- 
tary men of every rank, horse, foot, and artillery : it was 
perfectly picturesque, and we must pass through the loose 
array. An English officer, who proved to be Major Frazer, 
of the staff of General Urdaneta, seeing us advance, very po- 
litely approached, complimented, and made enquiries, and 
gave us the news, and 1 waited on the general to pay my 
respects and offer my passports, which he politely declined 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 339 

to see, as he' appeared to be apprised who we were : he 
invited us to alight, and partake of his camp fare. He 
made some enquiries of what I had heard at Merida, Gritja, 
and along the road, and I related to him all I had heard ; and 
we parted, urging our mules to make up for the delay. The 
route was more intricate and mazy, and the forest evidently 
deeper, and more dark and humid, and the plain was yet far 
distant. The sergeant, who knew the way well, pushed 
ahead, and the mules were evidently becoming feeble from the 
long descent, pressing the whole weight on their fore feet ; we 
were winding through a gravelly avenue, over which trickled 
a light rill, when the sergeant gave a shout, and suddenly 
plunged into the gap of a thicket, which proved to be merely 
a hedge, where the stranger would never expect to find a 
human habitation ; we followed through the brake, when a 
spacious cottage opened upon us in the area : before the door 
were spread dry hides, loaded with coffee, exposed to the sun 
for drying ; and in front the elegant coffee plantation spread 
deep and wide, and adorned with numerous banana trees. 
There was a second cottage, that, with an interval between, 
crossed the direction of the front ; and a delicious rivulet, 
which served to irrigate the coffee field and the gardens ad- 
jacent, murmured over a bed of dark green and gray pebbles. 
We were shewn into the first house by the good dame, 
who had instantly recognized the merry sergeant as an old 
acquaintance, and soon possessed herself of the relations of 
our party. The sergeant here purchased eggs, a fowl, and 
a young turkey, which was roasted to serve for the next 
day's feast in the wilds ; and night came upon us before we 
had well quaffed our chocolate. Our hammocks had, accord- 
ing to the established discipline, taken their proper places, but 
it was now so dark we could not know which was which : 
the good Senora soon removed this inconvenience, and ex- 
cited our amusement by tlie novelty and style of her illumi- 
nation. The. fibre of a plant about the size of a stem of 



340 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

hay, had been employed to connect, as on a string of beads, 
a number of the beans of the Palma Christi, or castor-oil 
plant. The seeds were quite dry, and by means of a bodkin 
they were perforated, and the fibre or straw was passed 
through them : this string of beans hung from her hand, with 
the lower bean lighted, and it cast forth a flame as pure and 
brilliant as an argand lamp. There were perhaps forty beans 
on the string, but the blaze did not extend at once above 
that bean which gave light, until it dropped off in charcoal, 
and the next bean continued to catch the fire and shew 
the like bright light in succession. 

We were very kindly entertained, and in a manner which 
appeared to gratify the giver as much as those who received 
the favours : no compensation would be taken for some fine 
oranges, and sweet bananas : a service of coffee by the wor- 
thy Seiiora in the morning, she insisted should be consi- 
dered as an evidence of her pleasure ; and she proceeded to 
give hearty thanks to Sajita Maria with great ardour and 
satisfaction, when the sergeant told her we should all return 
that way in three or four months ; which was in fact my in- 
tention, depending, however, on the course of the business 
which I was entrusted with. I had travelled too much in 
various parts of the world not to be acquainted with the use- 
fulness and advantage to be derived from little trinkets, plain 
knives and scissors, needles, thimbles, small tapes, bobbins, 
sewing thread, gimp, and a few cards of mother of pearl but- 
tons, to be used as presents according to the person to be 
complimented : I had here, as on other occasions before and 
afterwards, reason to be gratified by the satisfaction which 
little articles of this description afforded. The children here 
were young, and of course gratification more than use was 
to be consulted ; however, the Sefiora was particularly pleased 
with the largest scissors and a plated thimble. I had not an 
adequate anticipation of the obligation she appeared to think 
conferred on her ; and I am the more particular in this in- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 341 

stance, because future travellers may by similar means ren- 
der themselves and others acceptable. Indeed, I only re- 
gretted that the articles were not of more value, where such 
civilities had been bestowed so disinterestedly, and in a si- 
tuation which was so secluded as to seem cut off from the 
rest of the world ; for I should never have expected to find 
a human habitation, much less a ^ne prosperous coffee plan- 
tation, in the midst of this wild. We had gone to rest early, 
and rose late ; and it was nine o'clock before we set out for 
Tariba. 

The mountain regions of the Cordillera present a very dif- 
ferent aspect, to the traveller, from any thing to be found in 
written description. The Cordilleras are usually depicted as a 
long, uninterrupted, lofty, single range. No just conception 
can be formed from such an idea. I should rather say that, 
though in a certain sense continuous, they are continually bro- 
ken ; that is, as the Cordilleras are known to be elevated at Pa- 
tagonia, — nay, that Tierra del Fuego is an original part of the 
range as much as the Sierra of Santa Marta or the Brigantine, 
yet that it is not an unbroken nor a single range ; and that, 
even where supposed to be single, more particularly beneath 
the equator, the Cordilleras really consist of numerous distinct 
groups; that they are intersected in all directions by valleys 
and plains ; and that their real character would seem to be 
somewhat like a great table-land or platform, upon which had 
been piled a mound of mounds, within which another table- 
land was elevated, and other mounds or mountains thrown 
in every direction across and around its margin, and still an- 
other and another within these, till they terminate in such 
plains as those of Bogota and Quito. Should not this work 
swell beyond my intention, I shall offer some more particu- 
lar thoughts on this subject, which were indeed already writ- 
ten before I left Colombia. 

The valley into which we had now descended presented 
very remarkable appearances. The waters of this valley 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

appeared to hesitate between the choice of the oceans into 
which they should enter ; the prolongation of the ridges of 
Merida, of which those we had just passed was a continuation, 
seemed here to wind away to the south and south east and 
disappear ; but it was only a seeming ; though too remote 
to be distinctly perceptible, they were there ; but mountains 
and hills and plains, diminished by distance and comparison, 
occupied the vast space ; and have the lofty barriers of the 
Chisga and the Albaracin for their borders. We were here 
on the north side of the sierra, but the rio Tariba, which we 
crossed as a rivulet, and, which would seem to seek its bed 
in the Caribbean Sea, pursues a different course, and uni» 
ting with other streams augments the volume of the Apure. 

The ordinary road here leads by San Cristoval, but to 
save a few leagues we crossed the TarilDa, leaving that place 
on the left, and struck off north-west, taking the route of 
Capacho. We rested and refreshed at Tariba, and fell in 
with a French medical man, attached to the army, Avho, like 
others of the profession, complained of the healthiness of the 
climate, where he said they were professionally starving in 
the midst of abundance. Facts like these speak more than 
a dissertation. Tariba had been a pretty place, but has been 
" scratched by the war" — the country in the vast view 
around it, south-east, south, and west, is luxuriant, and the 
temperature as agreeable as that of Caracas. 

After a repose of two hours, soliciting the alcalde for 
mules in vain, as Capacho was reported to be only three 
leagues, and whether the leasrues were three or four miles 
long, could not occupy more than three hours, we determi- 
ned to retain the mules we had, and pay extra for them ; 
a few reals and some guarapa reconciled the muleteers, and 
we reached Capacho by five o'clock. 

The scile of this place is the summit of a hill composed 
wholly of a ferruginous sand stone, a naked rock, upon which 
verdure is to be found only in small holes or fissures ; open 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 343 

around, but steepest on the north and west, in which direc- 
tion the prospect is wild and forbidding. Nevertheless, it 
has a spacious church, of rude but firm structure ; and there 
are some tolerably good houses of the kind ; and a consider- 
able number scattered on the sides of the hill where any- 
thing like a level appeared to invite residence — -if invite it 
could. The whole visible population, here, were purely of 
African descent ; excepting at Estanques, I had not seen 
an exclusively African population any where in my course, 
and in the whole country not so many as here. They were 
all free people, and they had no habits but those of the other 
population of the country. They were civil, unabashed by 
the presence of strangers, and took a pleasure in rendering 
kindness. They were better clad than the rock they appeared 
to fatten upon, but they pointed to the plantations and fields 
around as the means of their prosperity. An uncommonly 
fine breed of hogs strayed round this rocky eminence ; we 
found no difficulty in procuring milk, eggs, and fruit, through 
the voluntary agency of these innocent people. But it was 
to me unaccountable why such a spot should be selected 
for habitation in the midst of a country so beautiful. There 
was no alcalde, and we stood in need of none ; an obliging 
young woman pointed out a vacant house, and it was the 
best in view, and there we hung up our hammocks, and 
went through the usual course of fricasee and chocolate. — 
The only mode in which I could form a rational conjecture 
of the motive for making this rock a residence, was the mul- 
titudes of red ants, which are more than commonly numer- 
ous in the adjacent country, and whose labours, in elevating- 
mounds of earth much larger in proportion to their own 
bulk, than the pyramids of Egypt to man, are manifest in 
many parts of the country. The absence of every thing like 
soil or vegetation, on this rock, seemed to pro'jct it from 
the ants; where the population were so sleek and shining that* 
they seemed to live upon the fat of the land, and probably 



344 YISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

selected the place as a refuge from those insects. Numerous 
goats in equally good condition with the other inhabitants 
were also there. 

On the morning of the 10th January v/e descended from 
the sterile side of Capacho, into a ravine of argillaceous and 
chalky rock, which was dissolved and discoloured the water 
that oozed out of the spongy sod of brown and dark grass 
which covered the slopes : the course of this day's journey 
would have afforded ample occupation to satisfy the curiosity 
of the zealous geologist for a month or more. The diver- 
sity of the strata which were presented on the sides of ravines 
and declivities of mountains was infinite ; we travelled down 
the sides of lofty slopes or ranges of the trap formation, com- 
posed of calcareous sandstone, tinged with oxid of iron, 
which had all the appearance of art, and the resemblance of 
the semicircular stairs leading to some vast edifice ; the re- 
gularly flat planes and vertical edges giving the semblance 
of stairs ; and the breaches of this regularity in the prolonga- 
tion, or extremities of those ranges of stairs, corresponding 
with the appearance of ruins in works of art ; in other places 
where the flow of a mountain stream had undermined the 
face of a precipice, and the bank in a mass fell forward, leav- 
ing the upright section exposed, twenty different strata ap- 
peared in horizontal, but varying lines, exhibiting anthracite 
coal of a glittering fracture, a dull carbon, a fleecy white 
earth, ochreous earth ; strata of siliceous gravel, and quartz, 
in vast fair masses : indeed, the ideas here given relate only 
to what was seen in the mere passing, without dismounting 
or any effort to collect specimens, which could not be ad- 
vantageously carried and preserved. 

The country now had totally changed its aspects ; vast 
headlands, ravines, discoloured rocks, and gloomy steeps, 
from which field and forest appeared to be excluded. It 
seemed to be the rendezvous of the great members and de- 
tached heads of the confederacv of the Andes, which had 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. M5 

met there to open their reservoirs, to cisiribute and send 
forth east, west, north, and south, their periodical floods, to 
cherish and diffuse vegetation and health, and temper the 
cHmates around and beneath them, though, in their presence, 
eternal disorder and sterility seemed to prevail. Looking to 
the west of north, the great master chain of Perija opens its 
vast arms, and relieving, by its sublime shadows, the nume- 
rous lowly valleys, whose richness and fertility it protects 
and conceals : farther north of the west, the mountains of 
Socorro appear; the intervening elevated plain of Giron, 
separated by its own peculiar paramo ; marked on its south- 
ern side by the mazy current of the dull Gallinazo, and far- 
ther north, Orcana, east of which the lofty paramo forms 
a long receding curve, whose horns are eastward. From 
the northern side of this vast curvature, which is the loftiest 
of the region, the snow-capped Nevada of Santa Marta rises 
above the clouds, in nearly a northern direction, casting bold 
shadows as the noon is distant in the advance or retirement 
of the planet of day, over forests, cliffs, and countless rivers, 
which flow eastward to the lake of Maracaibo or the ocean, 
and on the west into the Magdalena, holding in temperate 
richness and beauty the valley Du Par, and those fertile 
plains which must, ere long, become the seat of a rich agri- 
culture, and an innumerable population. 

Returning to the point of view, the line of the river Ta- 
"chira on one side, and the Sulia on the other, mark the north- 
east features of the magnificent groups, which take the dis- 
criminative names of the Sierra of Gritja, Pedraza, Merida, 
and Truxillo, over and along which we had travelled ; while 
to the south the chains take the names of Almozadera, Pam- 
plona, Chita, Zoraca, Chisga, Guachenuque, and Chingasa, 
significandy called also the ridge of the winds ; besides nu- 
merous others, which take the names of towns or cities con- 
tiguous. 

44 



346 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

When we gained the proud eminence, the prospect con- 
tinued to offer objects more sublime and new ; the forests 
again began to appear and thrust aside the rocks, or cast a 
green veil over their rude deformities ; light and shade were 
here accidentally caught in agreeable unity ; and the glit- 
tering cliffs, relieved by the softened verdure, made the pic- 
tures at once beautiful and sublime ; and in some instances, 
which were not rare, where the vast faces of steep rocks had 
been bared to the winds of heaven, they sometimes pro- 
duced, from accidental Hues of dilapidation by the atmos- 
phere, forms, like vast ranges of fairy palaces or structures, 
such as might have been originally formed by the Titans and 
the Giants, whom the poets and mythologists have made to 
aspire to scale heaven. This was not the only impression 
acting upon the imagination. In another place, from posi- 
tions more elevated, when the atmosphere was clear, and the 
light gleaming obliquely over the distance, the scene ap- 
peared to bear a kind of flatness or depression, with shadows 
here and there, but more fantastical than the shades upon a 
well-executed map, spreading their immensity so broad and 
vast that the head became dizzy, as if on a precipice, and the 
pulsation became quicker, from surprise and pleasure : such 
a vision was not durable ; a change of light destroyed the 
whole scene, and revealed the really broken and wild aspect, 
which a nearer approach realized. 

I had loitered unconsciously behind on this occasion^ 
which rarely happened, and when I awoke from this trance 
of the senses, I had to hurry along down the sloping and 
rugged ravines, which the caprice of nature had formed, and 
man, not less capricious, had converted into a road to the 
valley of Cucuta ; where, as if some of those genii, who live 
in romance, had determined to sport with the susceptibility 
already produced, presented among a diversity of streams of 
limpid water wrestling over the pebbles of the valley, a stream 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 347 

SO full and gently flowing, and so exactly coloured, as to 
seem a river of milk ; we crossed it, but its chalky colour 
only indicated the resemblance, the valley was too warm for 
the play of the imagination ; and we soon entered the peb- 
bled bed of the Tachira, which spread over the opening 
space in numerous rivulets. This was the boundary, and 
the Tachira the line which separated the jurisdictions of the 
Viceroy alty of New Granada and the Captain- generalcy of 
Caracas, — a boundary which no longer exists politically, for, 
by the new distribution of departments, provinces, and can- 
tons, it now takes a different arrangement. St. Antonio and 
Rosario de Cucuta, which the Tachira separated, are no long- 
er under different jurisdictions ; they belong to the Intend- 
ancy of Boyacca, province of Pamplona, and form part of the 
same canton. 

We reached Antonio de Cucuta about four o'clock, and 
the descent was so fatiguing, that we entered a well looking 
pulpureia^ where we rested an hour ; and had some oppor- 
tunity to remark that there was already an evident difference 
of manners, an appearance of regular industry, the houses 
more lofty and better constructed. We thought it becoming 
to purchase some articles merely to apologize for our intru- 
sion, but the female of the house, who had been industrious- 
ly occupied in rolling cigars, while she spoke and even ask- 
ed questions without interrupting her work, or abating her 
civility, said it was not necessary we should purchase any 
thing, as we had paid her a compliment in preferring her 
house to rest ; she directed a girl to procure what we want- 
ed, some good fruit and some sugar. We had been pre- 
viously, at our departure from Caracas, apprized that the sil- 
ver currency of Venezuela called Maquitina would pass on 
the east side of the Tachira only, and would not be receiv- 
ed on the west side ; we had provided by estimation Maqui- 
tina sufficient for the journey, and had guessed pretty well, 
for we had not much unspent ; it was received, however, 
but with an intimation that it would not be received at the 



348 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

other side of the river, and was not much desired here — 
though, as strangers, she would oblige us. The ideas con- 
cerning money here, though in a rude state of society, com- 
pared with countries highly commercial, take a more ration- 
al direction than in other places. At Caracas the Doubloon 
varies in exchange for silver from seventeen to eighteen dol- 
lars and a half; though there is some knavery in this varia- 
tion of the relation between two kinds of money, as the true 
relation is sixteen of silver for one of gold, of the standard 
twenty-two carats fine ; the principal cause is the established 
abuse covered bj^ this wretched currency called Maquitina, 
It is in shape as the varieties of angular pieces into which a 
coin less than a quarter dollar may be cut ; giving one round 
edge and two sharp- angled sides — from which the West In- 
dian term bit is derived ; the maquitina consisting of such 
bits, and these take the denomination of the parts of a dollar, 
as the real, or eighth of a dollar, or twelve and half cents ; the 
media f or half real ; the guartilla, or quarter real. This vicious 
currency is very impure. It is, in other transactions than 
small retails, put up in bags of ten, twenty, or any round 
number to an hundred dollars ; the sum is rated by the cur- 
rent denomination ; but as one real may be cut into five in- 
stead of four bits, and each bit passes for a fourth, instead 
of a fifth, the value in tale, tested by the value of the pure 
coin in weight, may amount to an average loss of one fifth, or 
from fifteen to twenty per cent. : when doubloons, therefore, 
are sought or given, this vicious currency makes the differ- 
ence in appreciation ; and that it should be less than twenty 
percent, arises from the circumstance, that all the bits are not 
deficient ; though, from my own observation, they are much 
more so than is generally supposed. Generally one hun- 
dred hard dollars, if exchanged for Maquitina at the current 
estimation, will not be worth seventy. five dollars tested by 
weight and purity. It may be said, that this usage being 
established, and no one appearing dissatisfied at being so 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 349 

cheated, the fraud becomes innocent ; so it was attempted 
to be justified to me by one of the concerned; but it must 
be obvious, that it is, when sanctioned or tolerated by a go- 
vernment, and institutions established and supported by go- 
vernment for the support of this fraudulent currency, it is a 
connivance in favour of the opulent to the plunder of the 
poor — it is privilege for the knowing gambler to cheat the 
ignorant and unsuspicious. 

In treating of the money and mint of Colombia, I may 
probably take some farther notice of this pernicious curren- 
cy ; which requires of the government, in justice to its own 
character, and the interests which it is their duty under a 
representative government to protect, to apply an effective 
remedy, which, reinforced by the banking system so unfitly 
and unfortunately introduced, may entail evils not less af- 
flicting to the public and to families, than the thraldom 
which the revolution has destroyed. 

After resting at Antonia de Cucuta, and chatting with the 
agreeable people who lived in the house, and who came in 
actuated by a curiosity no way impertinent nor unpleasant, 
we crossed the principal stream of the Tachira, and reached 
Rosario de Cucuta about half- past five o'clock, being the 
10th January. 

The alcalde, here, was not to be found. I dispatched the 
sergeant to St. Joseph, the head quarters of the military 
commandant, and sent by him the letter of General Clemen- 
te, and the sergeant returned, before it was yet night, with 
an order to provide us with the best accommodations of the 
city, and whatever we should else require. We were ac- 
cordingly conducted to as good a house as there was in Cu- 
cuta, in sight of the Plaza ; where we had ample and com- 
fortable accommodations. It had been the house of Pedro So- 
po, a French gendeman long resident there, but who having 
attached himself to the Bourbons, fled, and the property was 
confiscated. The house was in the usual oriental style, 
with an ample patio^ goodi lodging apartments, spare rooms 



B50 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

for accommodation ; a very spacious interior corridor and 
dining room, and a private chamber lighted from the street. 
The cocineria was out of sight, but with abundant room, 
and though it had suffered from the confiscation, there re- 
mained evidence that Part de viver had due homage under 
its original possessor, though the stew- holes were now nei- 
ther whole nor cleanly. In the spacious yard or area, to the 
rear of all, there stood by much the largest tamarind I had 
ever seen. In Bengal the tamarind tree rarely rises to fif- 
teen feet high, nor its stem to more than four or five inches 
diameter ; this beautiful tree was between forty and fifty feet, 
and the stem twenty-two inches diameter, at four feet from 
the ground. It was clustering in fine fruit, abundant, but 
not yet ripe. 

This valley rivals Barquisimeto, in the richness of its 
soil, the number of its plantations of cacao, coffee, sugar; 
and the usual products of the warm climates, oranges, le- 
mons, limes, pine-apples, and the numerous fruit of the 
country, were here in the utmost perfection and abundance, 
though the mountains appear wild and savage. 



351 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

Rosarlo de Cucuta — rich country — cultivators — changes — Incidents at Cucuta— 
the Indians, excellent husbandmen and labourers — go to a fandango — mi- 
nute account of — column of troops — an interview — departure — Valley of De<. 
solation — an inhospitable occurrence — ascend a dreary road — Post-house at 
Saltikal — cold, comfortless night — depart early without food — Alanadero — 
ascend a luxuriant mountain — bivouac and sleep — Indian population — enter 
Indian cottage — kindness — feast — Chopo — fine cabbages — adventure and de- 
parture — Witches in a fog — Pamplona — first impressions — source of the Sulia 
■ — antipathy to fires. 

The road, after crossing the Tachira, and leading to Ro- 
sario de Cucuta, which is something more than two miles 
distant, is luxuriant and fertile. The forest trees are lofty, 
like those of all the warm valleys. The parroquets, in nu- 
merous flocks, flit across and along the woods, and give an 
infallible indication, by their discordant screams, of the pre- 
sence of cacao plantations ; they are never separate, it would 
appear. Sugar-mills and refineries abound in this neigh- 
bourhood, and their riches are evident in the magnitude of 
the structures for the conservation of the productions, as 
well as in the fashion and size of the dwellings. The eflfects 
of war were indeed evident, but it was also evident that na- 
ture was too bountiful, and the people here too industrious 
and numerous, for those effects to remain very long visible. 
Every thing was already in movement, and the proverbial 
gaiety of the population was palpable, though not so much 
so in Rosario as in Antonio, and the rural habitations. The 
mills here were the best I had seen since I left San Mateo. 
The families of palm trees were here more numerous than I 
had before seen them on this journey, and more flourishing, 
giving an oriental aspect, at least to my perceptions, and 
made the landscape very much more agreeable than other- 
wise it would be to me. 



352 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

Rosario is not so extensive nor so busy a scene as Anto^ 
nio de Cucuta. The streets are much wider than at the latter, 
though both have the usual excellent pavement. The streets 
here do not exceed twenty-five feet, and the houses are not 
generally so spacious, though there are apparently more of 
two stories. The stillness of the towns in such a country, 
at this season, is by no means an evidence of its want of po- 
pulation. The plantations afford more enjoyment and agree- 
able occupation ; it is as quiet every day as Philadelphia of 
a Sunday, but very unlike Philadelphia at night. After ele- 
ven, in Philadelphia, the only evidence of a town to the 
hearing, is the occasional drone of the watchman calling the 
hours. In Cucuta, the evening sets in with the buzzing noise 
of a gay, prattling, moving crowd. The streets are all alive, 
•and the Plaza Mayor, which is a spacious and beautiful carpet 
of short grass, on which, if the moon shines, as it happened 
to do when we were there, the space appears alive with a 
playful population ; the guitar, the tambour, and the mara- 
ca, or cadence calabash, are heard on every side, as if the peo- 
ple, dead all day, had risen to dance and sing all night. I had 
been impressed with other ideas, by perusing some writ- 
ings of Palacio Faxar ; and my observations in this place 
afforded me, upon a comparison with his account, proof that 
the revolution had already antiquated his account of Cucuta, 
which is to be found in the third volume of the British Jour- 
nal of Sciences, p. 337 ; for, although there can be no 
doubt of the truth of his written descriptions, published in 
1817, those descriptions would not now in many cases apply ; 
and, from what I have seen there and elsewhere, Ifeel per- 
suaded, that, as has happened in the United States since the re- 
volution, the accounts which may now be given of the wealth, 
population, arts, society and manners, will so continue to change 
in successive periods, as that the account of any one antecedent 
period of three or four years will not be suitable to describe 
the circumstances at any subsequent. The face of nature 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 35S 

and its grand anatomy, the climate, and its riches, will be of 
the same character; but all things that depend upon institu- 
tion must undergo a still more extraordinary change and 
amelioration than the United States, because nature has done 
more for Colombia, and man has yet every thing to do : 
indeed the old institutions appear to have been intended to 
retard rather than to profit by the bounties of nature. 

Our quarters were contiguous to the south-west angle of 
the Plaza Mayor, and the house was very spacious ; the 
pavement which sloped from the corridore into the patio, 
shewed the name of Sopo, and the date of the building, as 
I supposed, which were displayed in round white pebbles 
on a ground of blue. An aged female mulatto, whose limbs, 
though lusty, appeared too feeble to sustain the volume of 
material flesh and blood and bacon, which she carried about 
her not very well concealed, had taken possession of the kit- 
chen, that she occupied since the flight of her master, and 
which, she said, she meant to hold till he returned, or she 
should die ; the remainder of her story was an eulogy, and 
by good accounts a well merited one, on the generosity and 
kind heartedness of Seiior Sopo; she had no comfort now 
but in doing as he did, shewing every kindness in his 
power to the passing stranger, and his neighbours all around. 
Repulsive as her loose attire and looser flesh were, the con. 
solement of her being heard and permitted to speak of her 
former master's virtues, was evident ; and it was not possi- 
ble but to sympathise with her, when her feelings, overcome, 
found vent in a flood of tears. 

We had notified the alcalde that we proposed to depart the 
next day, and requested mules, which he promised a la tjiana- 
naj but that inanana was succeeded by another ; the sergeant 
equipped in his full regimentals, grenadier's cap, and a bright- 
hilted sabre, I dispatched to the superior officer of the district, 
whose residence was at San Jose, about four miles north. 
I addressed him a note, with some papers, that were calcu- 

45 



354< VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

lated to obtain his attention, and he returned a very flatter- 
ing answer, with an intimation of dissatisfaction at the ne- 
gligence of the alcalde, signifying to him by letter that it was 
not the first time, and that notice would be taken of it. A 
peremptory order accompanied, to furnish whatever mules 
we required, and any thing else the country afforded which 
we stood in need of. 

This city will be ever memorable as the place in which 
the constituent congress of Colombia formed the constitution 
in 1820-21-— by which that union was confirmed that had 
its basis in \ht fundamental laiv promulged at Angostura in 
1819. This paper, as well as that of the same title enacted 
in this place by congress in 1821, will be found in the Ap- 
pendix, (No. I. II.) as they are very frequently referred to, 
and sometimes confounded with the constitutions. 

Seiior Palacio, in his notices on the valleys of Cucuta, 
which are, in some particulars that relate to the country, true 
at this day, but have, in other respects, undergone a total 
change — says, " the native Indians of Cucuta are a de- 
graded, poor, neglected, almost forgotten race of beings, 
which is indeed the case of the whole race of Indians," and 
he generously suggests what should be done to restore them 
to the condition of men. The revolution has gone farther 
than the benevolent wishes of the amiable patriot. All that 
existed, connected with labour and the disparity of condition, 
has disappeared. The Indian is a citizen, and negro slavery 
has nearly ceased. The Indians are no longer degraded, 
poor, or forgotten ; they compose the great mass of labour- 
ers now, and very few of African descent are to be found ; 
and I say here, lest I should overlook it in the multitude of 
facts that every where crowd upon the discerning observer, 
that I have no where known better labourers, men who work 
with more earnestness wherever I have seen them employed ; 
no men in any country work with more apparent earnest- 
ness and contentedness ; and no where have I witnessed such 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 355 

heavy burdens borne as by the aborigines, men and women, 
in all parts of Colombia that I have visited. Indeed I 
have not any where known people so uniformly muscular, and 
whose bodies and limbs indicated more strength. I have not 
been much among the tribes called uncivilized, but speak of 
those whom I have found in the cities and on the highways, 
whose huts I have visited, and whose labouriousness and 
contentment, and consciousness of the freedom to which 
they are restored, manifests itself in their conduct,, and their 
eagerness to bestow kindness and good offices. 

In this climate the nights are delicious — the industrious 
classes, as well as the opulent, enjoy them ; the latter in their 
ample halls ; the former under the more ample canopy of 
of heaven. On the great square, which our quarters over- 
looked, the evening gray light never escaped before the 
groups of both sexes assembled, and the music of their 
guitars, and other stringed instruments peculiar to the'Coun- 
try, were heard like distant serenades. Soon a more em- 
phatic, but less harmonious cadence was heard ; it was the 
indication of the dance ; Xht fandango, various dances called 
folias, the bolero, or pas seul, the capuchin, and the galeron. 
Of these I have been a spectator in different places ; here I saw 
only the galeron, which was not exactly such as is described 
by Palacio. On one evening of many, I walked with Eliza- 
beth to see one of those dancing parties, and wearing straw 
hats like all the group, and otherwise plain in our apparel, 
had a full opportunity to see the whole group, and to ob- 
serve their pastime. Though the moon was high and 
bright, there were numerous tapers. The tones of the gui- 
tar were suspended ; and the cadence of the macara took 
its place. This instrument is nothing more than a ripe ca- 
labash, from which the internal substance had been extract- 
ed so as to leave the firm shell clean and hard. Some seeds 
of maize are placed in the shell ; the neck stopped, and this 
constitutes the macara to which the galeron was danced, as 



856 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

I shall describe it. The sounds being the repetition of u 
few simple notes, which, though rude in the manner of pro- 
duction and emphasis, admitted of a regular cadence. 

A sprightly lass of about sixteen, attired in a handsome bas- 
quina of black, (a sort of gown and petticoat,) as soon as the 
circle was formed and the macara began to play, moved 
airily into the arena, and commenced a series of evolutions in 
mazy circles ; she held the side skirt of her basquina^ and her 
body and neck made many graceful inflections as she ap- 
peared to swim over the surface ; for no foot or step was 
perceptible, and her action seemed to be like that of a figure 
suspended by a cord in the air, only that there was grace 
and ease and pleasure in the movement. This was the 
characteristic mode of all the females who succeeded ; the 
order I shall now describe : the first senorita who entered 
had been but two or three minutes in motion when a gallant 
mozo, or youth, in a short blue cotton coat, osnaburg trow- 
sers, and good leather shoes, moved into the circle ; the 
young lady's basquina appeared to corroborate the sarcasm, 
that ladies have no feet ; she sailed round the arena, and he 
pursued, in good time, and with some movements which 
we should call steps ; she fled in mazes, and he followed in 
cadence ; till, suddenly, the damsel escaped into the crowd, 
leaving the pursuer to dance alone ; but another female, of 
about the same age, in a calico garment, entered the lists ; 
her basquina, however, was not so low as to conceal that she 
danced in her wedding-stockings ; she too sailed with no less 
ease than if she had the wings and the balance of a hovering 
kite, who was about to pounce upon a chicken ; she had made 
but a few turns, when the youth sprung from the circle ; and 
another young " squire of low degree," put his best foot fore- 
most, and commenced the pursuit of the deserted and now 
flying, nymph ; thus performing movements for which they 
have a nomenclature as significant as those who boast of 
higher science ; their los races, or retirings ; their movemiento 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 357 

contrario ; their paso chaseo^ &c. This dance, from the rude 
examples here displayed, had something pantomimic, a sort 
of ballet of action with a subject, in which transactions of 
life were intended to be depictured by a sort of allegory ; 
some of the persons appeared to act a part, to repel approach, 
and to fly from pursuit, to evade and to disappoint ; disdain 
and repulsion, solicitation, and flattery on the other side ; 
the flight being alternate, and the pursuit as the sexes entered 
on the arena, she flying upon wings concealed beneath her 
basquina ; he sometimes in his only shirt and pantaloons, 
clean washed, the tails of that shirt displaying the needle- 
work, in coloured threads, perhaps of the dulcinea after 
whom he travels in the mazy dance, with or without shoes, 
for it is about ten to one that there are many in the company. 
I was figuring in my mind some comparisons of the galeron 
with the rural dances of some other countries, and commu- 
nicating my comparisons to Elizabeth, who held me by the 
arm, when, to our mutual surprise and amusement, out 
Caracanian valet, Vincente^ equipped in his best shirt and 
breeches, " made a leg" to the coquette on the tapis, from 
whom her squire had just escaped. It was clear that Vin- 
cente had determined to sustain the reputation of Caracas, 
and to defend its superiority against all comers ; and, as in 
other places, there is a kind of merit in dancing long, as in 
dancing well, Vincente would not give way, but would pur- 
sue the lass who had commenced the pursuit of him : Vin- 
cente was, though not so robust as his countrymen gene- 
rally, a well built fellow, and he was perhaps the best dressed 
man in the company ; the fair one he encountered— for she 
was as fair as himself — appeared disposed to dispute the 
ground by time, as well as execution ; but she was obliged to 
abandon the field ; only to aflford a heroine more disciplined 
to renew the encounter ; and he, who had triumphed over 
the ariero of Valencia, was compelled, like other great he- 
roes, to strike to a damsel, in a somewhat worn green 



358 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

basquina^ who fairly danced him out of the ring, to the great 
admiration of the laughter-loving gay paisanas of Cucuta. 

We came away certainly without any reason to be dissatis- 
fied with the pleasures of these innocent people^ The deco- 
rum which prevailed uniformly ; the decent respect towards 
each other ; the general desire so conspicuous to please and 
be pleased, was truly agreeable. I have not seen many coun- 
tries in which a corresponding class could meet and part so 
rationally, and without any cause of dissatisfaction ; I have 
seen such assemblies in other countries disturbed by rude- 
ness or vulgarity, or by some of those who, presuming to be 
their superiors, deemed enjoyments and recreation an invasion 
upon the privileges of a degree more elevated : there was 
nothing of this nature at Cucuta ; indeed, in the whole tour 
I have seen nothing of quarrels or indecorum, but real happi- 
ness in these little rural parties. 

On the evening of the 13th, a column of infantry altoge- 
ther about one thousand effectives, passed by our quarters, 
being on their route to join Gen. Urdaneta. The troops 
were very well equipped, and, as they marched on the diagonal 
of the square, appeared to advantage. After dusk some offi- 
cers were passing well mounted, one of them addressed me 
in English, enquiring for the alcalde ; I replied with a sol- 
dier's familiar tone, that he had better take up his quarters 
where we were, first, and look for the alcalde afterwards, as 
the house was ample enough to afford quarters for the staff 
of the column. He adopted the advice, rode at once into 
the patio with his companions; we furnished lights, and 
whatever else we could, and the establishment was complete. 

It was Dr. Mayne, a respectable physician attached to the 
army, a fine manly figure, and a jovial soul ; who handed me 
an immense powder horn, requesting me to taste, and which 
I found, instead of gunpowder, loaded with Holland gin. 
After exchanging our news, we parted ; he moved in the 
morning. He has married in Colombia since. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 359 

We left Cucuta the 14th of January, at half past eleven. 
There are two roads, one north through San Jose, and the 
other west, which, being not so circuitous by three or four 
miles, the sergeant injudiciously preferred. We passed a mazy 
course, leading through a valley which presented the wildest 
picture of nature in disorder, that I ever witnessed. We had 
not anticipated such a prospect, much less the hazard and 
difficulty of passing through it. Our steps could not be 
chosen, and the sagacity of the mule was our only security. 
The bottom of the valley, as well as both sides, presented 
such a state of disorder as would induce a presumption that 
there had been some recent subterranean explosion through- 
out the three tedious miles of its length ; the rocks of every 
magnitude appeared as if newly torn asunder, and left in the 
positions we found them, ready at every step to roll from 
their impending positions towards the lower fragments, over 
which our poor mules scrambled with evident pain, but 
admirable patience. We very soon regretted that we had 
not paid our respects to the officer at San Jose ; but we at 
length gained a smooth sandy level, which, with the aptitude 
of mankind to forget their pains when succeeded by plea- 
sures, we soon left behind, and perhaps enjoyed the subse» 
quent part of the day's journey with the more satisfaction. 

About half after four, the country assumed a singular and 
luxuriant appearance ; a small river skirted by sloping banks, 
like scarp and counter-scarp of a military fosse, and 
regular as if wrought by the direction of an engineer, formed 
the side of the route, on the upper level of which we travel- 
led, about forty feet above the margin of the stream. We 
soon entered a closer woody region, and a narrow humid 
lane to the south, into which we had advanced about half a 
mile, when the sergeant suddenly wheeled to the left, and 
plunged into another descending lane, and galloped through a 
dark overshaded thicket, but with a clear path. We followed 
implicitly, and very soon gained an opening, where stood a 



obU VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

very spacious hacienda^ and adjoining it a handsome church. 
We rode up to the hacienda^ and dismounted. 

This place was in charge of an overseer, who sat on his 
bench immoveable as the bust of the saint over the church 
door. Upon being civilly addressed, and requested to afford 
mere lodging, and for which we should pay what he might 
require, he declined permission in a very coarse style. We 
were still standing below, when the sergeant returned with 
the refusal. It was not prudent, if it were practicable, to 
pursue our route at so late an hour. I enquired of some of 
the domestics where the curate or clergyman belonging to 
the church lived ; the surly boor forbid the domestic to an, 
swer ; andthe poor fellow retired, distinctly muttering "Go^a." 
For the moment the expression did not strike me. Some 
letters had been placed in my hands, ai^d one for the owner 
of this place ; I took it, and handed it to this boorish agent ; 
but either he could not or would not read. Night was at 
hand, and I undertook to civilly remonstrate, that it was 
impossible to proceed farther that night; that we wanted 
nothing but a place to rest in our own hammocks, and would 
be content to sleep in the corridor. He seemed immoveable. 
A conduct so unlike any thing I had seen or heard of in the 
country, so unlike the proverbial civility and hospitality ex- 
perienced every where else, was mortifying. I remonstrated 
again, and signified that I should represent his conduct to 
his superiors ; he then retired. I followed along the spacious 
gallery, saw several ample vacant rooms, and ordered the 
domestics to bring up our baggage, and desired the sergeant to 
see to forage for the mules, and secure them in a coral for 
the night. A household servant was requested to bring some 
fresh water, and was about to do so kindly, when she was 
scolded and forbidden. The hammocks were now hung 
up, our trunks placed in view ; and Pedro passed to the usual 
fire-place, to prepare t>ur chocolate, and cook our repast, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 361 

which it was very visible afforded much amusement to the 
domestics, who were numerous. We had some wax candles, 
which are often convenient for travellers in such circumstances, 
and the sergeant lighted a couple ; and we sat some time 
talking or reading, and, indeed, joking at this unusual inhos- 
pitality. 

The surly boor who had behaved in this ungenerous man- 
ner, now found the use of his tongue, and approached us in 
a manner so mean and servile, that I repaid him by a con- 
temptuous silence. The sergeant, more a man of the world, 
rallied him, and accepted for himself the eggs and fruit, 
which had been tendered to us, and refused ; they proved 
more acceptable the next day, as the sergeant very shrewdly 
anticipated. The servants of the house now brought water, 
which we wanted for mere cleanliness, and in this intercourse, 
a smart girl whispered, pointing at the overseer, " Godz," — • 
which in the morning we found to be the pass-word among 
those who conversed with our people. In fact the circum- 
stance of his moroseness was thus intended to be explained ; 
the domestics denominated him a Spaniard or Goth, as an apo- 
logy for his rudeness ; and certainly appearances corroborated 
the impression. We slept comfortably, and took care to 
breakfast before we moved, which was not till ten o'clock 
the next morning. 

Our route was indeed a labyrinth from which the pre- 
vious knowledge of the sergeant could alone extricate us 
without difficulty ; the ascent was steep, and rough, and hur- 
ried ; the summit elevated, wild, cold, and raw ; and the Cor- 
dillera broken into groups of stupendous magnitude, and se- 
parated by vast valleys or ravines ; nothing was distinct, but 
magnitude and disorder. We at length gained what may be 
described as the rump of a distinct ridge, woody, separate, 
and prolonged, as if thrown upon a vast plain in its centre, 
the plain, at each side, forming lovely, verdant, sun-lighted, 
lawns of great extent and level ; while the clouds wrapt 

46 



362 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

about us were chilly, humid, and unpleasant. We passed 
along the spine of this ridge, and at length reached the post- 
house of Saltikal. The clouds, in which we travelled, had 
proved to us a " Scots mist,'''' for they " wetted our jackets," 
and rendered water, to wash our faces at least, wholly unne=- 
cessary. This ascent might have been avoided, were it not 
for the notion of shortening distance. Roads lay at both 
sides on the plains below, and while the moist curtain that 
hid from us the sun's rays chilled us, we could see the plains 
below bright and warm as the scenes in a theatre ; and we 
could perceive the youth on the velvet green running races 
and at other sports, under a bright sunshine, though they 
did not appear larger than flies on a carpet. 

The administrador of the post presented himself, and, as 
he appeared to be the sole lord of these upper regions, having, 
besides the post-office, a well stocked pulpureia, and a sepa- 
rate house for his own residence, he assigned the post-house 
to us for our accommodation. I had yet experienced no 
inconvenience from insects, nor even seen a midge, or fly, or 
musquito, nor any thing resembling them, till we found the 
gnats making sharp trespasses on our faces ; in fact, they were 
blood-suckers : the place was a hovel not very clean, but as 
our hammocks placed us above the floor, we did not suffer in 
that particular ; but we spent a very disagreeable night, from 
the number and pertinacity of the gnats of Saltikal. We 
rose, therefore, very early, and but little refreshed. There 
had been a pretty heavy rain in the night, that made the 
freshness of the verdure around delightful; we could see the 
handsome (perhaps it was more handsome at a distance in 
comparison with the feelings we experienced at Saltikal) — ■ 
town of Alinadero distinctly below us ; and, from what we 
saw and felt at Saltikal, and what we saw and heard of the 
valleys on both sides, I should advise the traveller rather to 
go a league or two round on the plain, and sleep at Alina- 
dero, rather than encounter the gnats and the sleepless stye 
at the post-house on the ridge of SaltikaL 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 363 

The descent from this disagreeable place is worthy of the 
place itself, a rude ravine scooped out of a slippery soil ; steep 
and dangerous to descend ; and so eager were we to escape 
from the place, that we preferred going without breakfast. 
We gained the valley safely, and passed a tolerable path, 
leaving Alinadero on our left, and after two hours ride had 
to ascend another ridge, but glowing with kindly warmth 
and luxuriance ; the sides of the slopes were picturesque, 
and the cultivation was extensive and unexpected. Snug 
cottages were numerous. Spacious plots of apio^ that is ce- 
lery which bears a root as large as the common beet, but of 
a yellow texture ; neat bamboo fences, behind which the 
pine-apple displayed all its richness, in every stage of growth, 
its scaly cones and crested tufts giving the various hues 
which it displays, from pale emerald to deepest topaz, and 
garnished and guarded with armed blades, rivalling in magni- 
tude and surpassing in beauty the native aloe, or agave. We 
gained a spot where shade and prospect, and a beautiful 
rivulet, induced us to take refreshment and rest ; and we 
accordingly bivouaced, breakfasted, and took a sleep. We 
found much benefit from our short repose, and proceeded 
with new alacrity. The difference between the beauty and 
and luxuriance here present, compared with Saltikal, I could 
not account for : perhaps it may be the greater elevation of 
Saltikal, though I could not, from merely passing both, sup- 
pose any difference of elevation. Our route was here very 
agreeable. The population was entirely aboriginal, and we 
had an opportunity of seeing an Indian family in a state of 
very prosperous civilization. 

We were all attracted by a neat and ample cane fence on 
the right side of our path, as we ascended a knoll on the 
mountain; it was placed on the north-west slope of the 
sierra, and a very beautiful and lofty clump of forest trees 
sheltered its north side for some distance ; the interven- 
ing space appeared, some part in cultivation, and a larger 



364 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

part as if recently deprived of its productions. As we moved 
along the fence side, a very humble cottage appeared with the 
thatched slope to the road ; at the extremity a hatch, or cane 
wicket, opened to the west end of the cottage, and led into 
a fenced space which may be called the patio. I determined 
to enter, and all our party but the baggage followed. A 
comely cheerful Indian presented himself in a good white 
shirt and pantaloons, and paragattas on his feet ; he smiled, 
and, without any sort of surprise, pointed out to us the shel- 
ter of the roof, which being higher within than toward the 
road, formed a really convenient though rude corridor ; and 
he wished us all to dismount ; I had already done so ; and 
his wife, with a small boy and another child, was there en- 
gaged with a pot of better than ordinary earthenware, that 
contained about two gallons, which she was employed in 
stirring a soup, the fragrance whereof was very agreeable. 
The paisano had provided some rude seats for us, but be- 
stowed his first civility on Elizabeth ; the little boy was 
dispatched on some errand, while the good-natured squaw 
was occupied with her cookery, and casting repeated glances 
at her guests : the business at the fire was concluded very 
soon, and the pot placed on a sort of mat on the floor of the 
shaded place where we sat ; she then produced some totu- 
mas, or bowls of calabash, with pieces of the same material 
fashioned as near as possible like spoons ; a smaller bowl, 
it was the shell of a cocoa-nut, in which was inserted 
rudely a handle of cane, served for a ladle, and with which 
she nearly filled a small bowl and handed it to Elizabeth, 
and to each of us successively. Some arepa bread, with a 
little straw basket of limes, were placed on a neat white 
straw mat, and the obligations of a corresponding civility 
required us to partake of what had been so kindly shared. 

The pot was covered with a greenish scum, and some fat 
appeared floating in various sized spangles on the surface. 
As it was evidently the food prepared for themselves, there 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 365 

could be no apprehension of any thing but the flavour of 
the mess. I tasted it freely, and was very much satisfied with 
its composition and taste, and my companions were not 
backward. The sergeant, who had been familiar with all 
the concerns of the country, I must confess, encouraged 
me, as he too had his bowl, and feasted with evident satis- 
faction. Had we not taken a hearty meal after leaving Salti- 
kal, I have no doubt we should have found the soup still 
more delicious. However, we took sufficient for the occasion, 
and we had just finished when the little boy returned laden 
with fine pine-apples and oranges, and some smaller fruit, of 
which I had not seen any before or since. We ate of them 
all, and the sergeant was (nothing loth) requested to carry 
with us the pines that remained. 

The composition of the soup was of different vegetables, 
and a small portion of tajoy or sun-dried beef; the plantain 
cut in pieces ; the white yucca, the apio^ or root of the 
celery, some spices like pimento, and ginger, and abun- 
dance of red pepper ; bruized maize supplied the place of 
barley, and some aromatic herbs, of which I could not guess 
the name nor the resemblance. It was the common fare of 
the family, and the good-natured paisano appeared delighted 
with our satisfaction. Upon parting, I tendered him some of 
the current silver money, for our fare, as well as for some 
guarapa^ which was spontaneously presented also. The ho- 
nest native looked as if he doubted when I presented the 
money, and absolutely refused to accept so much. The 
pine-apples were alone worth a dollar, even there where they 
are so abundant, and he seemed to think that some little 
trifles I had given the children were more than ample com- 
pensation ; we placed the money on the floor, and a hearty 
shaking of hands closed our intercourse. The poor people 
came after us upon the road, and remained till we were 
concealed from their view by the luxuriant foliage. 

We reached Chopo about three o'clock, passing over a 



366 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

country perfectly new and romantic, in its bold forms ; long 
mounds of earth, with slopes of rubble, and verdant plats 
less steep beneath on our left, and a vast luxuriant country 
in our front and on our left, of which the boundaries were not 
visible ; on our right shaggy forests of lofty trees. We 
entered the margin of a deep ravine, to which the descent 
was unexpectedly long and tedious, but at length we reach- 
ed a small rivulet, the bed of a frequent torrent ; on the sides 
v/ere cottages, and in the neat gardens behind them fine cab- 
bages of three different kinds were flourishing, the first that 
I had seen in the state of vegetation ; Savoys, white sugar- 
loaf cabbages, and the large spreading kale ; there were others, 
but I could not discern them so distinctly ; but some of 
these we purchased, which were equal to the best of the 
Philadelphia market. Having crossed the ravine, and ascend- 
ed to the right the side of the hill on which Chopo is scat- 
tered in detached hamlets, there appeared at first not a living 
being ; we passed between the ledges on which the houses 
were perched, and saw a few women, but women only, 
and apparently much alarmed ; at length, seeing a lady in 
company, some of them appeared to wait our approach ; 
but still women, and women only : the fable of the Ama- 
zons seemed to be here realized. Not being able to obtain 
an alcalde, for none appeared, and loth to intrude upon those 
disconcerted females, lest we should offend or more affright 
them, we enquired for the curate, and the church was point- 
ed to, at some distance ; thither we repaired, but even there 
too all was silence ; not even a woman was there. We at 
once occupied an apartment, and prepared for refreshment 
and repose. 

The sergeant had set out in search of a supply of poultry, 
eggs, and vegetables, of which he purchased a good store ; 
he brought also an explanation of the appearances in Chopo, 
A conscription had taken place in that village a few days be- 
fore for its quota, to recruit the army of General Urdaneta ; 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 367 

we had passed the very men on the road, and had noted 
them for the usual stiffness and constraint of recruits, with 
their straw hats, their long-tailed shirts, with rough embroi- 
dery on the tails. Those who did not like gunpowder and 
glory, or preferred a wandering and fearful life in the moun- 
tains to serving their country, had fled, leaving the women 
in charge of the domestic gods. One man at last appeared, 
who stole his way to our temporary lodging ; he was one 
of those whose Jac simile is to be found in every country, 
who, having no qualities to endear or attach them to society, 
live by preying upon it. He pressed the sergeant to employ 
him for some service, who gave him two reals to purchase 
more eggs, very judiciously concluding, that his company 
might cost ten times less that way than a longer stay ; but, con- 
trary to the sergeant's expectations, the fellow returned, and 
presented eighteen eggs. The sergeant detected him in con- 
cealing the residue of two dozen, and the fellow had the au- 
dacity to demand another real, though he had taken six eggs i 
the sergeant, seeing the design to cheat the old soldier, re- 
solved to match him, and to get rid of him at once ; under 
colour of giving him more, he obtained two reals back, and 
then seized upon the six eggs the fellow had secreted, 
threatening him with the calaboso, or jail, and proceeded to 
uncoil one of the baggage ropes, threatening to tie him ; the 
sergeant anticipated ^hat followed — the fellow sprung from 
the grasp of Vincent, bounded at a single vault over the pita 
fence, and in a few seconds was out of sight in the valley, 
leaving all the eggs, of which he had robbed a woman of the 
village, and the money he had by his own roguery failed to 
rob us, behind him. The sergeant, instead of pursuing this 
knave, went in search of the place the eggs had been pro- 
cured, and found the fellow had asserted that we demanded 
them, and would make no payment ; that she, through fear, 
had sent the eggs, not expecting payment. The sergeant 
paid her, and satisfied her we had not any concern with the 



868 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

knave ; but she added that he was the terror of the neighbour- 
hood. We were fortunate in getting so well rid of him, as the 
sergeant had justly scanned his character at the first glimpse. 
We resolved, after resting awhile, to stay no longer in 
Chopo, and moved at half past four o'clock, ascending a 
winding but picturesque road to the paramo, through rich 
forests, until we gained the point above the forest limits, and 
entered a region cold, and damp, and misty. Our route lay 
on the east side of the mountain, and the wind was at north- 
west. Our direction lay along the shoulder of the paramo, by 
which we were sheltered from the rough blasts. The road 
was on a flat covered with short grass, as if sheep had nipt 
it close as velvet; numerous paths in the black rich loam 
marked the frequency of travelling, and the activity of the 
neighbourhood, as all the paths were fresh beaten, and nearly 
parallel to each other. Rain had been menacing us for some 
time ; and we resorted to our oil-cloth cloaks, before it should 
fall too heavy ; and, as the paramo stood between us and the 
sun, we were in a premature twilight ; our mules, by aug- 
mented speed, seemed to know they were near a halting- 
place ; when turning a short bluff, about a dozen females, 
all in black, with their long dark romeros floating In the 
wind, and they moving as rapid as if flying from a similar 
group of the same questionable shape, that at some distance 
followed them headlong ; Elizabeth and myself were riding 
on the middle paths of perhaps fifty, when these murky 
figures passed between us and the foot of the sierra ; their ap- 
pearance, and the dusky state of the atmosphere, produced 
on Elizabeth and myself the same impression ; I was about 
to say, "How now, you secret, dark, and midnight hags, what 
is't you do ?" when Elizabeth exclaimed Macbeth's witches 
— " Why, upon this blasted heath, stop you our way ?" — 
They rushed by us rapidly, enunciating a " Whe-e-euh !" 
giving unconsciously a new incident to lead the imagination 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 369 

after the mind's first illusion — the second group advanced, 

and fled as if in pursuit, seeming to say — 
Fair is foiil, 
And foul is fair — 
Hover thro' the fog and filthy air. 

The garments of men and women, it was before observed, 
changed colour on the approach to the cool region of Mu- 
chachees ; in the warm valley of Merida, and others, the 
light garments reappeared, and the black, blue, and brown 
colours were greater in proportion, in the order here named, 
now prevailed, and continued to prevail the whole way to 
Bogota, though lighter colours incidentally appeared where 
the valleys were warm ; and though the influence of foreign 
intercourse appeared very visibly in the garments of the opu- 
lent of both sexes, but more especially the females and mi- 
litary men. 

The mist had now become a mizzle, and accompanied 
by slight gusts, which, as they came from behind our 
course, were more sufferable, and still more so when a 
glimpse of Pamplona broke through the haze, far, far below 
us, on a verdant carpet to the right as we first saw it. 
Winding round a steep road, cut out of the side of the steep 
mountain, which shut out the wind ; but the soil being a 
slippery clay, the descent required care, and the mule, with 
its accustomed sagacity, chose to traverse in oblique lines, 
rather than proceed straight down. The city now appeared 
as we changed direction to the left of our front, or, as a sail- 
or would say, on our larboard bow, and before we reached 
the plain the air moderated, the mist replaced the rain, and 
Pamplona appeared exactly like Caracas, a picture or a 
map on a verdant carpet, sloping from the north and west, 
and its lowest point at the south-east angle, which opened to 
a narrow defile, separating two lofty mountains, through 
which a small limpid stream gently crept from the west — 
it was the first stream of the Sulia, which has its source to 

47 



370 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

the north-west of Pamplona. The valley, itself, was not 
open at the extremes like that of Caracas, of which it seemed 
to be rather a miniature ; a range of not very large moun- 
tains rose on its rear or north side ; the steep we descended 
formed the face of the valley east; on the south the Sierra 
was lofty and steep ; and the north and south sides so paral- 
lel that it seemed as regular a parallelogram as if so designed. 
The west face of the valley was a slope, which, though it com- 
pleted the parallelogram, was not abrupt or elevated like the 
other three sides, but gradually rose in the distance to an equal 
♦height, as we afterwards found the road to the capital leading 
over it. Elizabeth, and the sergeant, and myself, had push- 
ed on with more rapidity than the rest, and we presented 
ourselves at the commandant's quarters, whom we found the 
handsome well equipt Colonel Guerra ; he had been but a 
few days in office, but invited us to sit down, and ordered 
some anniseed liqueur, which was brought with biscuits. He 
sent an order to receive us in the former aduana^ or custom 
house, which had ceased with the abrogation of the Alcavalajr 
and we proceeded thither. 

In the commandant's quarters we saw the first window 
closed against the external air, an indication of the humidity or 
coldness of the climate ; there were no sashes nor frames occu- 
pied by glass, but they consisted of pannels of fine linen, 
which gave a tempered light in a bright atmosphere, but when 
it rained gave a very gloomy light, and to us a fire would 
have been a comfort. But an opinion or a prejudice prevails 
here and at Bogota, that domestic fires are pernicious to 
health ; and thus sometimes they are content to shiver rather 
than obtain warmth by fire ; hence the diseases of the inci- 
dental kind that prevail here, are the face-ache, tooth-ache, 
and sometimes slight catarrh among old people, arising from 
this uncomfortable prejudice. The chambers in the house 
of the commandant, ibr they are generally two stories high, 
had double sets of doors ; that is, the ordinary upright door, 



VISIT TO Colombia. 371 

and another which was not upright ; outside the chamber 
door two jambs were fixed in an inclined position projecting 
six or eight inches from the wall ; to one of these jambs, a 
frame covered with strong linen was fixed by hinges ; and 
so of other doors ; the philosophy of double doors, which the 
boors of Russia had conceived, was devised also here in the 
cold valleys of the Andes, within the tropics 7° north 
latitude, where the same expedients were resorted to, by in- 
terposing a column of air between the external atmosphere 
and the house. 

The Sulia I observed flowed from the north-west of the 
plain to the opening in the mountain, in that direction we learn- 
ed lay the celebrated gold country — erroneously called a 
mine — I saw at the treasury of Bogota, a rude lump of the 
native ore, found in one of the washings of this region, weigh- 
ing about seven pounds. The washings were obstructed 
when we were there, as I felt an inclination to visit and 
see them in operation, but some renegadoes had been sent 
thither by the Spaniards to intercept the collection of gold, 
and they threatened all persons found there with death. 



CHAPTER XXIV» 

Pamplona a general military depot— order of the arsenal — military drills™noveI 
mode of training horses to the fire — comparison with the Persian horseman- 
ship — delayed for mules — hints for travellers — supplied from the depot — leave 
Pamplona — field works of Morillo — Paramo of Cocota— dismal place — the 
white house — a loom for woollen weaving —a domestic missing— returns — 
and is discharged — Chataga — three routes to Tunja — take the central — moun- 
tain characteristics — Cerrito — Volcan de Jlgua — lavadura de Oro — the village 
of Cerrito— mills numerous in the valley — fine grain country — Assuncion — 
the good Franciscan curate. 

Pamplona is a military depot for artillery, cavalry, in- 
fantry — for discipline — and a military hospital— and an arsenal 
for arms of every kind ; the latter was under the direction 
of a French officer, who, after serving with eclat in several 
campaigns, had retired after the battle of Carabobo to Mara- 
caibo, and had acquired a handsome fortune, which he lost 
on the taking of that place by Morales. He returned to 
the army and was received, and appointed to this charge. 
The business going on was all judicious and efficient ; the 
order established in it, the effective benefits, particularly in 
the repair of arms, have repaid its expenditures twenty fold. 

Pamplona, if it had roads of communication suitable for 
mercantile transportation and travelling, such as are in other 
countries, would be, from its cool climate, position, and the 
richness of the country all round it, a place of great import- 
ance ; indeed it must become so as the prosperity of the 
republic grows. However, it is by no means so cold as our 
spring or autumn days in March and October in Philadel- 
phia ; it is only after being some time habituated to the warm- 
er regions that its atmosphere may be called cold. The 
forests are never unclothed, perpetual verdure prevails, and 
frost or snow is never known but as it is seen on very dis- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 373 

tant and more elevated Paramos. A vigorous muscu- 
lar frame is characteristic of the population of all de- 
grees, from Caracas to this place, and in all parts of the 
republic that I have visited ; at Pamplona the forms of per- 
sons are perceptibly more vigorous, aYid their gait more 
bold and elastic. 

I found it difficult to obtain mules here, and was delayed 
on that account some days. As the morning air was brisk 
and delightful, I made some rambles of curiosity ; and as the 
knovt'ledge of any particular art or science is apt to be accom- 
panied by a desire to see and make comparisons with the 
knowledge of others on the same subject, in my morning's 
walk I accidentally came upon the ground of exercise, where 
I had an opportunity of not only seeing what I had some prac- 
tical acquaintance with handsomely performed, and entirely 
to my taste, but witnessed a mode of training horses to the 
fire of artillery, and the artillerists to practise, which I had 
neither seen nor heard of before. 

The drill of light troops was carrying on in the manner of 
the American rifle corps, and I found that there was a transla- 
lation into Spanish of the rifle drills, which I had published 
when lieutenant. colonel of the first United States rifle regi- 
ment. The drill was handsomely conducted by young subal- 
tern officers, who, besides judgment, took great pleasure and 
great pains to instruct the young troops, and, to do them 
bare justice, they were certainly not so awkward as some that 
have come under my observation elsewhere, and, what is 
more remarkable, I do not recollect having seen recruits in 
the regular service take more delight in their first exercises. 

The training of the horses came upon me wholly by sur- 
prise, and, as I was alone, I did not choose to ask questions ; 
aware that, during a state of war, strangers should be 
particularly cautious of making inquiries, and especially 
where there are depots. I was, therefore, waiting to see the 
practice of a handsome battery of brass field pieces, arranged 



374 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

on the west or lowest side of the great plaza, which is more 
than half a mile in length north and south, as the city stands 
upon the higher or north side of the plane. The artillerists, 
after performing a short infantry drill, or movement, to gay 
dancing music, took possession of tlreir battery, and com- 
menced a regular fire from right to left — suddenly a nume- 
rous drove, perhaps three hundred horses, without even a 
halter, entered upon the south-west angle of the Plaza. A 
considerable number of peonsy who had them in charge, 
accompanied the horses behind, and at each side, and they 
were brought into a promiscuous group in that angle of the 
plaza nearest to the batteries. The artillerists had, at the 
signal of a bugle, taken their stations at the guns, and were 
governed throughout by the bugle. Whether this practice 
grew out of what all experience teaches, that animals, and 
men among the rest, acquire more confidence, and even en- 
counter danger with less timidity in association, than sepa- 
rate ; or whether it was a practice discovered by accident, 
and pursued in consequence of its demonstrated efiicacy, is 
not material. Upon a signal from the bugle, the horses 
were put in motion by the peons, so placed as to cause that 
motion to be continued in a circle. The horses had com- 
pleted the circle three or four times, all in a mass, when the 
remotest piece of artillery was discharged, the concussion 
put the horses into more rapid action, and another gun, 
somewhat nearer, had a like effect ; a third produced a still 
greater celerity ; but the fourth, fifth, and sixth guns 
were rapidly fired, and the movement could not be more 
accelerated, they were as much at speed as their crowded 
circumstances would admit ; the firing continued from right 
to left, and the horses were gradually brought to move in a 
slower pace, and so continued through another range of dis- 
charges. Guns were then fired alternately from the right 
and the left, with an interval, and became more rapid in 
such alternation; there was some little starting at tlie sud- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 375 

denness and remoteness, and alternate nearness of the fire ; 
some horses endeavoured to escape, but the active peons were 
at hand, and compelled them to keep within the circle. A 
rapid and random fire succeeded, the horses pursued their 
circular motion, their circle became more ample, and they 
assumed a gallop, as was desired. A short pause enabled the 
horses to respire, for they were already warm, and it was 
contrived to give their circle of action a greater expansion, 
on a figure approaching an ellipsis ; at length they were 
brought to move along the front of the fire, and return and 
wheel again while the fire was continued. The exercises 
were finished by the random fire of the light infantry drill. 
The horses at length became quiet, and on the third day 
(I did not see them when exercised on the second) I found 
that the horses followed three or four mounted men, and 
came right or left about as the mounted horses led. 

I understood these drills were preparatory to mounting, as 
the horses had only just arrived from the plains ; and that as 
soon as they moved without panic in the presence of the 
fire, they were to be put into a drill mounted, which was not, 
upon their ?na?iege principles, so essential, but as to the horse, 
the men are so much masters of the seat and hand, and at a 
mounted drill I understood they moved close under the fire 
without swerving. I have given the general plan and mode 
of the drill, rather than the particular description of any one 
day's exercise. The system was methodical and perfectly 
successful. No people that I have seen are equal to the 
South Americans in the perfect command, or the dauntless 
confidence with which they mount the wildest horse ; the 
Persians are as graceful and confident riders, but the Persian 
horse is not caught wild and mounted the moment he is 
caught; the Persian horse is kept with tied fetlocks, by 
ropes affixed to two stakes about four feet in front, and 
two more four feet in the rear of him ; he feeds with his 
hind limbs stretched, and without the bit ; yet is seldom 



S76 YISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

tamed, or as completely within the government of his rider's 
hand as the horse of Colombia, where the horse retains 
his wildness on the pasture, but obeys the rider with the 
readiness of the spaniel. The Persian relies mostly upon 
his bit, the Colombian on his spurs j though only in a 
greater degree, both use the heavy bit and long-pronged 
rowel. The Colombian will mount the wildest horse, and, 
before he dismounts, the horse is tame and obedient. The 
training of the Persian horse is a tedious service. 

The circumstances of Pamplona, as a central depot for so 
many various services, and the army being Ithen in motion 
for the neighbourhood of Maracaibo, the demand for horses 
and mules for public service was immense, and we remained 
five days in Pamplona, unable to procure any, at any price ; 
reflecting that the governor, having but recently taken charge, 
might not have been acquainted with the orders which had 
passed on, and had procured us so much attention and com- 
fort on the greater part of the road, I addressed a short note 
to the commandant, and sent with it the letter of General 
Clemente, Intendant of Sulia, to me, from! Betijoque, and 
some other documents, which experience in travelling 
through other countries had taught me the importance of — 
and I sent the sergeant to the governor, who, upon the peru- 
sal, immediately ordered mules from the public depot, ex- 
pressed his regret at my detention, and gave me a passport 
from himself, to be used when it should be necessary. We 
had mules at the time he appointed, and, on Sunday, 18th 
January, at noon, we ascended the mountain, at the foot of 
which the little brook of the Sulia wound its way along the 
plain from the north-west. 

About half a mile from the foot of the ascent we reached 
a ridge, the prolongation of which was in the line of descent, 
and at both sides choked up with deep forest. At this place 
Morillo, in one of his military operations, cut the ridge com- 
pletely across, and established a formidable battery ; no po- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. S77 

sitioii would seem to be better chosen, or adapted to cut off" 
all intercourse on that side wiih Pamplona. It was a trench 
of ten feet in depth, transversely with the line of the ridge, 
along which the only road lay ; but we learned that it had 
been turned by a division of the Colombians, and that some 
of the guns in the arsenal, which we had seen, were aban- 
doned by Moriiio, the surprise of the attack was so vigorous. 
The ditch had been filled up, to a certain extent, broad 
enough for a mule road ; but the extent on both sides re- 
mained as it first was formed, and keeps up remembrance. 

The Sierra which we had to pass was very arid when we 
began to descend, and the steeps tremendous, by which we 
reached Cocota, a village so miserable, and the steeps so 
dreary and desolate, that we deternriined to pass into a better 
region ; and crossed a tolerable bridge over a small river, 
ascending the steep side of a chalky, craggy road, through 
which we gained a mild and verdant region. We could 
discern, at several miles distance, before we descended the 
dismal Sierra of Cocota, a white house on the green ridges in 
front, and thither we moved. The climate, and the aspect 
of the landscape, had all changed in this short transit of not 
more than three leagues from Cocota. We found, on reach- 
ing this place, that it was habitually resorted to, but, as the 
usages of the country establish hospitality, every house on 
a road is accustomed freely to afford the traveller accommo- 
dation, when there is space to receive him. We rode up under 
this knowledge^ and the old husbandman, without hesitating, 
crossed his coral^ and led us to a hovel, where we found 
standing a rude formed loom, adapted to the weaving of 
very coarse woollen or cotton. Here we hung up our ham- 
mocks, but we missed our cook Pedro, and had to draw 
upon the talents of Vincent for the quieting of our appetites, 
which were very much excited by this day's varied and 
tiresome journey : Vincent here unfolded his skill in cookery 

48 



378 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

to great advantage, and we were enabled to retire to rest 
without the necessity of a taper. 

Pedro had charge of Elizabeth's black mule, which had re- 
quired to be spared, in order to retrieve it ; but he had con- 
trived to lose the mule on which he had himself rode, and after 
severely wounding the black mule under his care, rode into 
the coral when we were in the moment of departure. De- 
termined to do without him, and as he had been indiscreetly 
paid at Pamplona, and we had no tie upon him, but the dif- 
ficulty of escaping, if he committed any outrageous mischief, 
he had in fact spent his money in drunkenness at Cocota, 
He was here discharged ; and the best remedies of the Ser- 
geant's skill, as a horse-doctor, were called forth, and with 
most complete success ; in a few days he cured a wound 
which threatened to disable the mule for ever. 

It was ten o'clock, on the 19th of January, before we left the 
White house, and late when we reached Chataga, on a river 
of the same name, over which there is a rude, but conve- 
nient, bridge. This place was considered formerly as the 
commencement of a forest of the same name, and though the 
forests do not appear so stupendous as others we have passed, 
the route is in that state which may, without impropriety, 
be called a wilderness. We passed the night at this place, 
and by nine o'clock on the 20th were in motion for the mid- 
dle route by Anciso. 

At Chataga there is a choice of three routes to Tunja, and 
it 4s difficult to say which is the worst. That to the east 
side of the ridge leads by El Pilar, Betoye, Patute, Pinas^ 
Manare, Pore, Marcotc, and Paya, to Tunja. 

The route to the west of the Sierra was by Sulia, Sarrare, 
across the river Chichimacho, St. Gil, Obia, II Tirano, Soba- 
ya, Velez, and Leyva, to Tunja. 

The road we pursued was central, and we selected it be- 
cause mules are not so easily and certainly obtained on the 
collateral roads in any part of the country, as in that which 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 379 

the correoy the armies, and merchandise travel ; nor is subsis- 
tence for travellers so good, or the police so regardful of their 
duty. Indeed, all the routes were described in such horrible 
terms, that we were very well prepared to be disappointed if 
any thing agreeable should occur. 

Our route therefore was from Puenta,Chataga,Cerrito, Cer- 
rito Nueva, the Paramos, Tecuia, Conception, Capitanejo, 
Suta, Asuncion, Sativa,Chota, Pesea, Serinza, Sogomoso,Dhi- 
lamo, and Tunja. 

The country at this point beyond Pamplona is very strong- 
ly marked by the divergency of vast spurs of the Cordillera, 
like the radii from a great centre ; the lofty chain of the 
Chisga shoots off like the trunk of an immense tree, with nu- 
merous and monstrous branches, whose intervals form valleys, 
and whose streams contribute to the beautiful and splendid 
Apure ; the chain of Merida lies to the south-east, having 
several parallel ridges and valleys, which break their main 
continuity to discharge their waters to the north, or south, or 
east ; the chain of Pidraza sends its branches into Varinas ; 
and that grand chain which terminates its sublime and snow- 
clad summits in the verge of the ocean at Santa Marta, has 
its separation and its stem at this place, and shoots forth its 
lofty ridges due north from this point ; vi'hile the ridge over 
which we were passing, and between the wild chains of 
which we found Cerrito, there was visible the effects of an 
overflowing of a water volcano : the main direction here is 
from north to south, prolonged south from the point at where 
the eastern ridges diverge. 

The Galinazo, which washes the valley, and carries off the 
countless streams of Capitanejo, has its line from north-east 
to south-west, as far as Tunja, where its great lines of ele- 
vation are constantly thrown into groups, whose heads are lost 
in the clouds, but whose feet appear to rest on level plains, 
from which they seem to rise abruptly, leaving vast levels, 
and windings round their sides, which afford outlets for the 
waters to flow, the traveller to pass in shade at all hours, and 



80 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the herds to be transferred without ascending the SiciTa^ 
Whoever imagines that the Andes are an unbroken chain or 
a comparatively narrow ridge, mistakes the whole character 
of those sublime elevations. There is a grouping and inter- 
section throughout the country, from the Silla of Caracas to 
the snow-clad ridges of Chisga, which unites the ridges east 
and south-east of Bogota with the great double chain of Quito. 
Before we descended this inclined plane leading to Cerrito, 
a stream sustained by artificial embankments, and about 
twelve feet wide, crossed our route obliquely from right to 
left, and wound round an ample space enclosed by stone walls. 
A timber platform over the stream led to a gate, inside of 
which was a porter's lodge, and a family with several fine 
children : we were admitted, and halted ; and, on enquiring 
as to the cause of the water of the stream being dark and 
foul, and the banks covered with what seemed to be ashes ; 
for the stream had overflowed on both sides, and left a ridge 
of several inches deep upon the banks and the ground ad- 
jacent, while the stream still continued to flow rapidly, loaded 
with this muddy, gray, ashes-like substance, and which spread 
all round, and into the lower valley more than a mile — an in- 
telligent and civil little man, who was seated on a bench in the 
corridor of the lodge, informed me that a mountain, to which 
he pointed, (and whose black bleak summit seemed at top to 
form the edge of a circular mound and bason,) had a few days 
before cast forth a volcan de agua, an immense body of water ; 
that the flood was so great as to undermine and overthrow 
immense bodies of rocks, and to change the whole aspect and 
shape of the ridges which before existed there ; and pointed 
to the new appearances, the stupendous perpendicular cliffs 
opening on each side to crevices more deep, the naked rocks 
presenting ochreous and rusted shades, but on projecting 
ledges displaying piled ridges of the same ashes-like sub- 
stance, and streams of the same feculence : there is no possi- 
bility of describing by words the wild disorder of this place. 
It appeared that the crevice which we saw next the road was 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 384 

but a narrow opening to a more spacious area, from which 
several vallies opened in different points ; that some of those 
valleys were now closed up, and ravines replaced former 
mounds of rock ; piles heaped on piles of this ruin of the 
mountain were partly visible, and, connected with the ideas of 
the phenomena communicated by the narrator, formed an 
object sublime and terrific. 

Had we not halted to procure some water at the porter's 
lodge, this occurrence might have escaped us, with only the 
bare view of the ashes on the embankment, and the turbid 
appearance of the stream. I had dismounted, with a view" 
to walk and supple my joints, and had entered into chat with 
this stranger ; some sprightly children had selected me out, 
and were amusing themselves and me by their innocent 
prattle, and giving me, — with their broad black opened eyes, 
and extended hands, with their palms uppermost, relating in 
their brief phrases the wonders which I did not yet compre» 
hend — el volcan terrible — el manga de agua^ arpeso — una 
vortice delareo — una turbellino de la montaha ! — atonito! — y 
marviliosamente ! I should have remained in the dark stilly 
had not the stranger made me acquainted, as above, with 
the really marvellous and astonishing subjects of their inno- 
cent communicativeness. The stranger said the torrent that 
rushed out of the crevice in view, spread over the whole 
valley, more than a mile in length and half a mile in breadth, 
and that enormous masses of rock were removed from posi- 
tions which they had possessed from time immemorial ; that 
there were heavy showers of rain, thunder, and lightning, 
and frequent gushes from the cerro^ the roar of which was 
heard ; that some of the ravines were filled, and steep preci- 
pices undermined, by whose fall spacious levels were con- 
verted into steeps, and new spaces that opened ascents to the 
mountains before unknown ; and that the stream continued 
to bring away the gray ashes-like substance as we sa^v it. 
He added, that before this phenomenon, that ravine led to a 
lavadura d^orOf or gold washing ; that a party had gone from 



38S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

CerritOj since the inundation, to visit the washing, and had 
not since been heard of. 

There being an appearance of rain on the brow of the 
cerrOf and not wishing to be deluged in ashes, we parted 
with those people, who had, during little more than an hour's 
stay, sought many ways to entertain and oblige us ; we bade 
our adios^ and moved through the rocky fragments to the 
valley where Cerrito was scattered upon the shoulders and 
sides of hills, although the rain had on our way called forth 
our oil-cloth cloaks. The appearance of the village is in ac- 
cordance with its name, which signifies steep, craggy, elevated 
and inaccessible mountains, indicating too probably that phe- 
nomena such as had recently occurred were not entirely new. 
The groups of houses stood on detached verdant hills, through 
which the open doors gave perspective views of other hills ; 
and little gardens appeared beyond and'contiguous, and seemed 
like carpets hung up to air or dry. We obtained very good 
quarters, and purchased some very fine fresh butter, though 
insipid, from the want of salt, to which there appears to be 
an unaccountable aversion throughout the country ; so that in 
the most respectable houses, we have been under the necessity 
of requesting salt, which,'though used by us only in the mode- 
rate manner customary in the United States as a condiment, 
excited great surprise, and sometimes cautions for our health's 
sake; for myself, I suspect, that the use of salt would be a 
preventive of that very unpleasant disease the Goitre. This 
village of scattered hillocks, notwithstanding the desolation 
of the Volca7i cle Agiia in its neighbourhood, has every ap- 
pearance of prosperity, and the turbid stream which we pass- 
ed in the plain above, was here employed in turning some 
wheels of mills, at which good wheat was converted into 
flour, for the country surrounding ; and the view of the coun- 
try south was that of a plain laughing widi abundance. 

About six o'clock, the 21st of January, we left the first 
Cerrito, and before nine passed a second village of the same 
name, but of a more regular and handsome appearance ; this 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 383 

village, and the next called Asuncion^ stand on the side of the 
valley, on a broad bank of half a mile width at the foot of the 
mountain, but half a mile above the broad rich fields of grain 
that on every side covered the spacious valley. Asuncion 
had an appearance of newness or neatness ; the houses were 
all whitened on the outside and inside ; and the church was 
airy, light, and handsome, in perfect harmony with its vil- 
lage. This neatness was accounted for by the harvests which 
it overlooked, and showed that, whatever may be the general 
deficiency or neglect to use the gifts presented by nature, 
here a better police, or wiser judgments, led to wealth — that 
is, true wealth, the capacity to possess and enjoy the bounties 
of heaven. Wherever this aspect does not appear, if nature 
has not denied the means, it is an unerring proof that the 
public administration is imperfect, neglectful of its duties, 
and should be changed. It is in the power of every govern- 
ment to form the character of the people, and render them 
capable of assuring their own happiness. The man who does 
not believe so, is unfit for public trust. Mankind are naturally 
too fond of comfort and enjoyment, to disregard either, when 
either is acquirable; and no criterion of the character of a 
government is so infallible as the condition of the population. 
The village of Asuncion was a striking example of these 
truths. We had not yet become acquainted with the author 
of this prosperity, neatness, and superiority of condition visi- 
ble in Asuncion, where its neatness, order, and general com- 
fort appeared so strong as to mark its peculiarity. It was the 
work of a worthy Franciscan, Fra. Joachim Gcrcz'a, with whom 
we soon after became acquainted on the road, and who ac- 
companied us with little deviations from Santa Rosa to Tunja. 
The account of his happy curacy was not derived from him- 
self, but from others with whom we had intercourse. He 
said nothing of himself, ;^and I feel persuaded that he travelled 
only to afford us civilities, and exchange for good offices the 
information we could severally give. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

New appearances.— Anciso. — The Goitre.=--Ruins. — Cotton cleaning by a minia' 
ture gin. — Meet a traveller. — New and wild route — ^imperfectly described- 
steep ascent and tremendous descent. — Capitanejo. — The Gallinazo river. — • 
Savage mountain bluffs and fertile valley. — Liberty tree, an extraordinary 
wscaly palm. — Assiduous and civil alcalde. — Celebrated bridge — described.— 
Strange sight. — A vidette. — A cavalcade. — The clerical and civil functionaries 
of Suata — generous reception — hospitality — luxuriant country — agreeable re- 
pose and entertainment — leave Suata. — Another Tartar. — Susacon — munici- 
pality come out to conduct us. — The Calderon family — militia muster — hand- 
some population — tall, very fair complexioned — well clothed — deficient in arms 
— superabundant feast — fine fresh butter — economy of the dairy. — Curate of 
Sativa — new hospitalities — departure — appearances of the country. 

The country which had presented such variety of strange 
forms and aspects, continued to vary its features, at every 
stage. Plains had become more frequent in the prospect, 
and the peopled tracts showed vast flocks of cattle, pf dif- 
ferent kinds. We had now, however, to pass a long range 
of paramo, through thick forests, where the exclusion of the 
sun's rays and the black soil made the road a series of mule" 
ladders, most fatiguing to the precious animal, and constantly 
appealing to the experience and commiseration of the rider. 
We at length descended, crossed the broad valley to the left 
or south-east side, and travelled on the foot of the mountain, 
over a rocky soil, south to Anciso ; which we reached about 
four o'clock, but much fatigued, and determined to halt there 
that night. We found the people here, and none more so 
than the alcaldes, attentive and solicitous to*render us civility. 
The goitre, which had become more frequent since we left 
the Chitaga, here, perhaps, affected every tenth person, and 
men, to appearance, the most. The second alcalde, who 
took some pleasure in communicativeness, although he was 
at constant pains, though in vain, to cover, with a muslin 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 385 

scarf, three large tubercles o{ goitre^ which grew perpendicu- 
lar to his chin in front, and occupied all the space beneath 
both ears, was not backward in touching on the subject of 
his disease. He informed me that all his children were af- 
flicted by goitre, and that one of his sons was afflicted to 
idiocy by the disease ; that this was a very general effect on 
the children of parents who had goitre. 

On the 23d we left Anciso about nine o'clock, the sun's 
rays so ardently reflected by the white, sandy, and rocky re- 
gion, over which we were now passing, though on the north 
skirt of the mountain, that we were induced to enter the ruins 
of a sugar-mill, of which there yet remained some excellent 
wrecks of good mechanism. The shed, open at the sides, 
was more than thirty yards long, and about forty feet broad. 
There were some young people here engaged in cleaning 
cotton from the pod, who received us without surprise or 
apparent concern, offering civilities, and performing them 
without bashfulness or forwardness ; and returning to their 
occupations, while they freely, but modestly spoke when 
they were questioned. 

The cotton-tree was seen all around in its utmost luxu- 
riance ; cacao and sugar fields, watered by numerous rivu- 
lets, flowing below the scite. They had a very simple, but 
small machine, employed in extricating the seed from the 
cotton ; two upright wooden shafts, about thirty inches in 
length, two and a half inches in breadth, and three quarters 
of an inch thick, were made firm to a block below, so that 
the faces of the two upright shafts stood parallel, at a dis- 
tance of about four inches. By means of mortices in the 
two shafts, two cylinders of iron, three quarters of an inch in 
diameter, were so placed, one over the other, and adjusted 
by bolsters below, and wedges above, as to admit the en- 
largement of the space between the cylinders at discretion. 
The cylinders were not more than three quarters of an inch 
thick, and upon the lowermost was fixed a piece of ox-hide 

49 



386 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

with the hair outside and short, serving as a card or brusby 
which constantly remained on the cyhnder as it revolved. 
Both cylinders had rounces or handles, like that of a grind- 
stone or domestic cofFee-mill, one at each side, and a boy or 
girl turned each a cylinder, so that each person turning the 
cylinder outward from himself, the two cylinders revolved 
in the same direction with each other, and the fleece from 
the pod being placed at the line where the two cylinders 
united, the hair skin on the lower cylinder caught the ends 
of the fleece, and so turning until the contents of the pod 
was exhausted; the fleece appeared on the other side in 
a clear and beautiful web, and the seed remained behind, 
falling in a basket prepared to receive them. The cleansed 
cotton was then laid several layers one on the other, and put 
up in small rolls or knots. The machine as to effect was 
perfect, but susceptible of improvement, and capable of being 
wrought with one person's labour instead of three ; or of 
being turned by any of the mechanical forces which are 
usually employed elsewhere. 

A merchant of Maracaibo, who is well known in Philadel- 
phia, met us at the foot of the steep we were about to ascend ; 
he was from Bogota, for Caracas, and we exchanged our 
news, and learned the rumours from the opposite directions in 
which we were travelling. The paramo we were ascending 
led into a recess, retiring from the deep glen along which we 
had marched ; the valley terminated in two immense masses of 
perpendicular rock, beyond which, crossing their steep extre- 
mities, the glitter of the sun betrayed the rapid rush of a river. 
It was the Capitanejo, which we were to see at full length on 
the other side of the ridge we were now ascending, under the 
name of Galinazo; our route passing over wild and savage piles 
of rock, on beds of loose fragments of gray and white sand- 
stone, threatening to slide from its precarious and tempora- 
ry bed at the slightest pressure, and crush every thing be- 
neath ; piles of rock below indicating the frequency of such 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 387 

formidable ruptures and projections. By various contor- 
tions and laborious windings, we gained the summit ; and,^ 
on looking down, the point of our ascent appeared underneath 
our feet ; it was like travelling up the steep slope of one of 
those sharp-roofed houses which were formerly so frequent, 
and are not yet rare, constructed as it would appear to pre- 
vent the deposit of heavy beds of snow ; the very top of 
this mountain was an angle as acute as a ridge tile, upon 
which a mule could not stand on either side without one 
end elevated and the other depressed. We expected to find 
the opposite side a similarly pulverised mass ; but, though 
the unusually ardent sun made the face of this mouiitain ap- 
pear to send forth a glowing effervescence, we found the 
descent only different in kind and variety of danger and 
difficulty. It was a sort of perpendicular quarry, which 
some violence of nature had scooped out of the mountain, 
and formed into a semi-circular wall of freestone ; a gap or 
path appeared to have been picked out obliquely into a sort 
of gallery, formed of the shelving rock ; the face of this curv- 
ed wall, or well, was a trough of loose, angular, shifting frag- 
ments of stone, from an inch to four inches on the face of 
the angles, a sort of rubble, such as is shoved out of a stone- 
cutter's yard, but more fragile ; on a scaffold about three feet 
broad, where broadest, having the resemblance of steep stairs 
or a winding terrace, or what other name may be applied to 
it, partaking of all, and like neither ; looking over the side, 
which was unavoidable, the chasm below looked tremendous; 
and if it had been the first place of danger we had met and 
overcome, might have induced hesitation before we attempt- 
ed to descend. I dismounted — not doubting the excellence 
of my mule, to which I should have committed myself 
bUndfoId any where, but the rubble was so unequal that the 
mule's legs were often hid, and I feared cut by the unsteady 
mass on which it trod ; — a stone beneath his foot, with my 
weight on his back, might, by defeating his instinct, have 



388 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

canted me over along with the mule, and finished ray joiir- 
ney more awkwardly than was desirable ; the ease of the 
faithful muk, I confess, was a consideration with me. Yet 
my philosophy was overcome before I had descended half 
the way, and 1 remounted. Elizabeth and Richard kept their 
seats with as much sangfroid as if they were in a theatre, 
and arnused themselves with the extravagant sports of na- 
ture every where around us, or as if they were only looking 
at paintings. 

Arrived at the foot of this prodigious work of unciviliza- 
tion, looking to the south, the river whicli/ rises in the Sier- 
ra of Albaracin, south of Bogota, and which, before it reach- 
es this valley is called the Gallinazo, but here is called, after 
the town by which it passes, the Capitanejo, was before us 
in full length : after it leaves this valley, till it unites its 
waters, under the name of the Sagomoza, with the rivers 
Suares, Moscos, and Sarrare, takes the name of the Chia 
and Chichamocha, till its descent into the Magdalena, where 
its waters form a spacious port called La Torra^ a long time 
abandoned, but, from its position and facilities, likely to be- 
come an important commercial entrepot at no remote period. 

This river moved in very ample volume from the south, 
and so near, before it turned off to the west, that its rapidity 
and unusual line of descent were very perceptible. More 
than half a mile wide, its rapidity resembled the swell of a 
mill-race, immediately after its issue from the gorge of the 
dam, and its force against the foot of the lofty mountain of 
rock, against which it drove like the impulse of a battering 
ram, bore at its base, and on the foce of its cliffs, not only the 
evidence of greater violence and greater elevation, but that 
the constancy of its action had frequently detached vast mas- 
ses from above, and produced that magnificent disorder 
which its front presented. Passing the eye to the left from 
this point where we had halted to breathe and congratulate 
each other on our escape from the house-top, the town of Capi- 
tanejo stood on an elevated ground which sloped towards the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 389 

left of our then position, and on the east side of the river 
which occupied the west side of the valley, with its single 
but grand palm tree, elevating its scaly stem 120 feet, top- 
ped by the elegant forms of its fan-shaped leaves and branches; 
wc travelled towards the town over a path that paid 
annual tribute to the accumulating floods of this valley; 
the sides of which were every where cut into trenches, and 
opened their mouths to the common reservoir, leaving their 
chasms open like the teeth of a saw ; the face of the coun- 
try around was in wild disorder, yet upon the space contigu- 
ous to the ordinary elevation of the floods in the rainy season, 
haciendas and trapiches send forth their beautiful products 
and their rich odours. We entered the town about five 
o'clock, and found the alcalde in the suburb, as if he had 
received intimations of our approach ; he led us through the 
great square by the foot of that palm which we had distin- 
guished in the distance. He told us it was the liberty-tree 
planted by the people soon after the revolution, and here it 
was that all public orations were delivered, and festivities 
celebrated along with those of the church, near which it 
stood, surrounded by a well-built cube of masonry of ten 
feet on the face. I had supposed that the palms of Hindu s-^ 
tan and Pegue surpassed all others for their altitude, magni- 
tude, and the regularity of their stems, but this excelled in all 
respects any that I had seen in Asia. We were conducted 
to very comfortable quarters, and had leisure to change our 
garments, and take a ramble, as we constantly practised 
when our fatigue was not excessive, or our arrival too late. 

I had heard very much of the bridge of Capitanejo ; it had 
been represented to me as if it was a new wonder of the 
world ; perhaps this exaggeration was one of the causes that 
our admiration fell short of this general opinion in the town 
and country around : it was held forth as being thrown over 
the river where it was unusually wide, deep, and rapid. Had 
this celebrity been qualified by referring to the humble state 



#v 



890 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

of all the arts, obstructed and cut off by Spanish desire of 
perpetuating barbarism ; had it been shown as an object pro- 
duced, where there was neither science nor models for imi- 
tation ; and in the entire absence of those implements which 
facilitate and finish the works of well-conducted labour ; or 
had it been the work of an untutored Indian, though still 
nowise a prodigy, it might have commanded more admira- 
tion ; but the river does not exceed seventy feet in breadth ; 
and, instead of six or seven fathoms, it was not more than 
ten feet deep. Though the torrent which must pass beneath 
it in the wet season must be stupendous, it is not more than 
about a fifth of the waters of the valley which enter its chan- 
nel above the bridge, as the bridge is not distant from the 
upper extremity of the valley, which is about three miles 
and a half long, and about two miles broad. 

Capitanejo is on the more elevated part of the east side of 
the valley, and it is united by the bridge with a causeway 
well formed, having flank or wing walls of good masonry, 
broad and inclining outward as you approach the causeway, 
and closing as the bridge is approached. There was skill 
and forecast, and labour judiciously applied on this part of 
the work, which had a gradual ascent to the immediate en- 
trance upon the bridge ; good buttresses of stone- work sus- 
tained the walls of the causeway, and the road on the surface 
was excellent. Having gained the summit of the causeway, 
the entrance to the bridge is closed by a double gate of good 
workmanlike execution, and the bridge being " ivell housed''^ ' 
with a competent roof ; within the gates are apartments for 
the keepers. I think it was a media for every unburdened 
mule and head of cattle, that is the sixteenth of a dollar, six 
and a quarter cents — laden mules paying double. The mi- 
litary and members of the government are exempted from 
toll, and no doubt the religious also. 

The roof over the bridge was constructed in a good plain 
style of carpentry, that betrayed in its forms a foreign hand ; 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 391 

there was an attempt at a rough facade on the exterior of 
both sides, though it was not until after passing midway, or 
after crossing and moving out of the hne of its prolongation, 
that the pediment above and the gallery-hke hand-rail were 
seen to advantage, and the principle of the bridge brought to 
the eye. Another gate and lodge was on the west side, and 
was entered from another cause- way ; the platform or path 
of the bridge about fifteen feet above the surface of the river. 

The bridge is not an arch of wood or stone ; the piers on- 
ly are of massy stone, well wrought into masonry, ten feet 
above the water level. Upon the summit of the stone piers 
floors of the most durable timbers of the country are formed, 
the squared ends side by side projecting over the stream 
about twelve to fifteen inches ; another floor is laid upon the 
first, of which the ends projecting over the first, as the first 
project beyond the stone pier ; a third still projects farther, 
until the height required is gained ; and the like process on 
the opposite side ; the courses being ten or twelve, say ten, 
gives a projection of twelve to fifteen feet over the river. 
Beams adapted to the space unoccupied are now thrown 
across, and by the usual sort of carpentry the whole are so se- 
cured, that the superstructure becomes an easy ordinary 
work. The timbers, of which the ends project, being very 
long and buried in a bed of stone and mortar, so as to ex- 
clude moisture and bind them in their position, left only 
the wing-walls and the braced causeways to finish the work. 

The workmanship is more useful than elegant, and be- 
trays the hand of a European carpenter, who in his rambles 
through the world, discovered that with very moderate me- 
chanical skill he could render great benefit ; though his sue 
cess seems to have turned his head, having abandoned la- 
bour. I understood he was now travelling through the sur- 
rounding country living upon the fame of the bridge of Ca- 
pitanejo, and is looked upon much in the same light as 



392 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Faust the printer, who it was believed could never have ac- 
complished such works without the aid of the devil. 

The utility of this bridge is unquestionable, as the toll 
testifies. On the 24th January we crossed the Capitanejo at a 
quarter before nine o'clock, and proceeded withodt any in- 
cident unusual, until we halted in the forest, at a rivulet, 
where we rennained some time in the delicious shade ; we 
were again on our wqy towards Suata about four o'clock, 
when the sergeant, whose military habits had made his eye a 
perpetual centinel, discovered a sort of tartar-looking cava- 
lier, or outscout, apparently reconnoitring, and who, upon 
obtaining a distinct view of our party, took to his ass's heels 
and scoured the plain, the side of the precipice, and the val- 
ley, as if his Pegasus, like that of Belerephon, had wings ; and 
in truth the appearance of his romero floating on the wind ho- 
rizontally behind, gave him the appearance of flying : the 
sergeant had set out with his lance couched, the very mo- 
ment he discovered this vidette, but he lost the race, and he 
had just commenced a prognostic of some danger, when an 
enemy, of a different character from that he apprehended, ap- 
peared in front, and spoiled his anticipation. 

A cavalcade of fifty or sixty persons moved towards us, 
and from among them the Belerephon who had excited the 
sergeant's vigilance rode up, and enquired for me by name, 
intimating that the curate, and alcalde, and the principal 
citizens of Suata had come to escort us into town, and pray 
our company to an entertainment. The curate himself now 
approached, and after introductions had passed round, we 
moved into Suata, bag and baggage, in the midst of this live- 
ly civic train. 

We alighted at the house of the curate, a cheerful jolly 
gentleman, without any of the starch of clerical stiffness, and 
as we found, on nearer acquaintance, without any of that in- 
solent austerity, which so ill becomes a Christian pastor, and 
casts a gloom over moments that cannot be rationally taken 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 393 

from human happiness, and wherever practised, or by whatever 
sect, against another, or their educated opinions, is always a 
proof of superstition in him who is capable of displaying it. 
Hnd we been his richest and most bountiful parishioners 
he could not have treated us more kindly, from whom he 
had nothing to expect. 

We were at our ease in a moment ; several citizens, men 
of good intelligence, formed a little assemblage, and the cu- 
rate, who was more conversant on human affairs ancient and 
recent, than might have been expected in so remote a quarter 
of the Andes, and especially so near Capitanejo, which looked 
like that chaos which was at the beginning, and is to be at 
the end of the world. 

The country here had a very different aspect, and a little 
enthusiasm and a little imagination well mixed up, might 
make out of it a better paradise than some ingenious men 
have heretofore demonstrated. The air was exhilarating, the 
country rich and blooming, and every one solicitous to oblige 
us ; we were conducted into a commodious and well-fur- 
nished apartment, where we found glass windows, and a table 
spread with snow-white damask, and an ample and luxurious 
feast. The table was exactly full ; and, although the curate 
was abstemious himself, he put about the bottle of excellent 
Canary with the course of the sun, and gave some compli- 
mentary and some political toasts, and appeared as full of en- 
joyment as if he partook himself of the circling glass. He 
had appropriated some sweet wines, real sack, for the SehO" 
rita Americana^ as he called Elizabeth ; and for us all no en- 
tertainment could be more timely, nor more agreeable, from 
the kindness with which it was given. We enjoyed it the 
more upon contrasting the present with our passage over the 
short roof, and over the wall of the freestone well, and (I 
was going to say) the infernal regions of Capitanejo ; but 
these recollections soon fled before our present enjoyments, 
^nd our good spirits : our pleasure had not flagged when 

50 



394 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the coffee appeared in social style, followed by chocolate in 
freshness and fragrance ; and so we sipped and chatted till it 
was near nine ; and if Elizabeth had not unwittingly yawned, 
which the attentive curate translated into a signal for retiring, I 
think I should have been apt to have sat till midnight. It was 
a two- story house, and the curate himself led and placed us 
in the separate but contiguous rooms that had been prepared 
for us. Every convenience that could be found in an opulent 
house in Philadelphia, we found here; excellent feather beds, 
and sheeting, napkins, basons, soap, brushes, mirrors, &c. 

We rose at seven o'clock on the 26th of January, and a 
breakfast awaited us with the kind gratulations of the wor- 
thy priest ; we had trays of fine and various fruit, coffee and 
chocolate, fine white bread, sponge cake, and the never- failing 
sweetmeats. It being Sunday, while our host was at prayers, 
we made an inspection of our wardrobes and a change of 
apparel, which our comfortable close apartments enabled us 
to do at leisure, and we spent the day most agreeably. 

We left Suata, accompanied by our good curate and 
friends, who escorted us into town, and parted with them at 
ten. The sergeant said he should be content to live at Suata 
a couple of months ; but at the moment, he descried another 
Tartar, who, after seeing us, made a flight across the fields 
like his predecessor, and soon after the whole municipality of 
Susacon approached : after salutations, we pursued our yay 
to the lofty, open, airy town on the side of a gentle slope: 
the curate was advanced in years and unable to ride, but sent 
his gratulations, and the alcalde, Senor Calderon, as he had 
to himself all the honour, determined to share it with his. 
wife, a lovely buxom gentlewoman, tall but full, about 
thirty. four years of age, and fair, and in as full roseate bloom 
as any Hibernian mountain nymph. She had two sisters, and 
two younger daughters like herself; and the honest alcalde 
seemed to feel his delight doubled by the pleasure so mani- 
fest in the countenances of his really charming wife and their 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 3D5 

female friends. I felt not a little pleasure myself at seeing 
this fine group, and their innocent and fond curiosity ; they 
were never tired of conversing and examining Elizabeth, 
whose cheeks here found rivals ; and they tittered with open 
eyes of surprise and delight, when told that all the sefioritas 
(young ladies) of North America were of the same complex- 
ion. *' madrede dios /" exclaimed the girls, and they blushed 
and apologised for their incredulity. The good lady of the 
house had left the young folks together, and I mixed with 
the crowd, which was considerable, it being muster day of 
the militia. I could not but contrast the appearance of these 
comely, well-clad, clean, cheerful, and orderly peasantry, with 
those I had seen in other towns, such as Truxillo, Valeria, &c. 
Indeed there is a striking difference between the appearance 
of the people in Venezuela and Cundinamarca : the change is 
evident before leaving Venezuela, for, after reaching Mucha- 
chees, the country presents on the plains more cattle, better 
farmers' houses, and a cheerful people. The war had desolated 
Venezuela so much more than New Granada, that it is seen in 
the visages as well as in the houses and apparel of the people. 

The officers of the militia, chosen by themselves, did not 
exceed their just authority. The sound of the bugle brought 
them into line of double files. They had but very few mus- 
kets, but they had " the queen of weapons," the lance, in 
abundance ; they looked very well, but did not move, which 
I regretted. The population here was taller than usual else- 
where : the good lady was herself tall ; and the female specta- 
tors were fair and rosy -cheeked. 

The alcalde introduced me to several of his relatives, as if I 
had been also one of his relations ; and by the time the muster 
was over, about two o'clock, we were summoned to dinner ; 
we were placed on each side of the interesting mistress of the 
house, and the table was long, well-covered, and the seats full. 
It seems an entertainment had been prepared the preceding 
day, but our spending Sunday at Suata had marred that 



396 ¥ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

purpose ; but time only was lost. The good lady did the 
honours of her table with the simple dignity and ease that 
marked her appearance when I first saw her ; every one was 
attended to ; and as she was aware that certain products, to 
which we are accustomed in the United States, were not al- 
ways to be found on the road, she had been at her dairy, and 
presented us with some fine pale-gold- coloured butter, equal 
to any the Philadelphia market affords. It was a whim that 
induced one of the young ladies to form it into an imitation 
of the shape of a cow, and so it was placed before us. The 
butter was of the finest flavour, as its appearance indicated, 
and we used it with sliced bread, and the hearts of the best 
celery. The good lady and her female friends were delight- 
ed with Elizabeth, as she was with them, their manners were 
so unaffected and ingenuous : they threatened to overload her 
with sweetmeats and other articles that w^ere transportable, 
preserved fruits, ginger, citrons, oranges, limes, and half a 
dozen small pots, of which we did not know more of the con- 
tents than their excellence. These were placed in charge of 
the sergeant, with an injunction of secrecy, and he was true 
to his trust ; for our first knowledge of their possession was 
on a paramo, where there was no opportunity of procuring 
refreshments, which made the kindness of the charming fa- 
mily of the alcalde of Susacon of tenfold value. 

It may not be amiss to notice the process of the dairy in 
the preparation of butter, at Susacon, and other places. The 
milk, kept in pans of the country manufacture, is skimmed of 
the cream in the usual way ; it is transferred to a round 
earthen pot, which is suspended by cords so as to be swung, 
and jerked, and agitated, till the butter is separated, and 
taken out carefully, placed in clean cotton cloths, and com- 
pressed till the milk is entirely extracted ; but the economy 
of salting appears not to be known, or nOt to be regarded, as 
there is a general prejudice against salt, though I understood 
that prejudice to be giving way very much. In other parts 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 397 

of the country I have understood, that butter is produced by 
a more rude process, the cream being put into a leather 
bag, and shaken till the effect is produced. The churn and 
staiF, and the revolving-churn, are unknown where I have 
been. I have often wished that it was within my power to 
present some perfect utensils of this kind to the amiable fa- 
mily, as an evidence of the gratitude of which their kind- 
ness has left a deep impression. 

We broke away from these charming and kind people 
about half past three o'clock, much against their wishes and 
endeavours to detain us at least a week ; and it is question- 
able whether the parting did not overbalance, in painful 
feeling, the gratification of an intimacy, which, though so 
short, was delightful and honourable to the human heart. 
The curate of Sativa^ who had expected us two days be- 
fore, had come to Susacon in search of us, and now accom- 
panied us to his parish. As we approached Sativa, the cor- 
poration came out to receive us, and as we entered the vil- 
lage, a group of young ladies of the neighbourhood presented 
themselves to receive the Senorita Americajia^ of whose ap- 
proach they had somehow heard three or four days preceding. 
Where the young ladies are, the gentlemen will follow, and 
their salutations were, Fiva la Republica Americana I Viva 
Bolivar / Fiva ! Fiva ! — for, unless Bolivar be associated 
with every festive act, the act is incomplete. It was some 
time after five o'clock when we entered Sativa. Our halt on 
Sunday had disappointed the expectations of those good peo- 
ple, and preparations had been made for our entertainment, 
of which we had the evidence on our arrival. A spacious 
table, covered with damask cloths, viands in great abun- 
dance and variety, alternating with bouquettes of pinks of un- 
usual tints and magnitude, and whose perfume mixed with 
that of the jessamine and rose, and other flowers of great 
beauty, which were strangers to me, impregnated the air. 
Fruit, pastry, wines, red and white, were abundant and ex- 



398 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

cellent, and the worthy curate, who was not feared by his pa- 
rishioners, and who mingled in the spirit of equality with 
the crowds that were drawn hither to see the sights sat 
with us, and enjoyed the pleasure and conviviality of the en- 
tertainment he had prepared for us. 

It is proper once for all to state, that in the whole course 
of this kindness and honour so unexpectedly bestowed on 
us, we had no expense to incur ; that the generosity was 
spontaneous, and had its compensation in its own grateful- 
ness, and our comfort and gratification. 

On the 28th, escorted as before, we left Sativa : the prac- 
tice of *' doing good by stealth," of which we had many ex- 
amples, as well as at Susacon, was here practised upon us 
also. The curate had caused a very fine turkey to be roast- 
ed, and placed in charge of the sergeant, who was told, that 
in a few hours after our departure we should have a paramo 
to pass, which would give a better relish to our dinner. I 
soon experienced the sensation of hunger on the rough, 
winding, and steep passages, and, when we had descended to 
the plain, I was agreeably surprized on alighting at the hamlet 
of Tienrey, by the appearance of the roast turkey, and a bot- 
tle of wine, of which two accompanied the good curate's 
providence. 

Though the roads, if paths for which art had done no- 
thing can be properly so called, were rugged and precipi- 
tous, the atmosphere in this day's journey was warm, but not 
oppressive ; population appeared to be considerable ; and as 
no very high mountains appeared, perhaps, as Humboldt says, 
because " the Andes were beneath our feet," the verdure 
all around was uninterrupted ; there were indeed no level 
tracts, but hill and dale, and many dwellings, and number- 
less cattle, were seen in every direction. The population and 
dress, which changed from light to dark near Muchachees, 
and again became lighter in the warmer valleys, between 
that place and Pamplona, where colours became sombre and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 399 

clothing warmer, on this route had assumed a medium ; the 
body clothing being generally light, but never separated 
from some warmer garment, which was worn in the cool 
air of the morning, or put on with the setting light of the 
evening. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

Theatre of Bolivar's greatest triumph — an intelligent fellow-traveller — ideas of 
the Moscas nation — metaphysical notions — a vast chasm in the Cordillera [^a 
work of human labour — traditions — Serinza — Spanish desolation — another 
Tartar vidette — cavalcade — alcalde — meet a Caracas acquaintance — traits oi 
the people — entertainment — position of Serinza — departure — the paramo fer- 
tile — sapling fences — ploughing — M. Mollien, a French ti'aveller — his views 
contrasted — extravagant mistakes — hypochondria — anecdotes of M. Mollien 
— patriotism and generosity of the people of Serinza — the white heron — cats 
metamorphosed into warming pans. 

The country around us and over which we were passing, 
at this moment possesses a celebrity which belongs alike to 
aboriginal traditions and more recent history. To the rightj 
south and west of our route, lay before us the plains of So- 
gamoso, and from Faypa to the marshes of Vargas, Santa 
Rosa, and Tunja, to Boyacca, is the tlieatre of that series of 
military operations, which followed Bolivar's astonishing 
passage of the Andes from Mantecal, and terminated at once 
the hopes of Spain at Boyacca. Here the issue was decided 
that established the seat of the republic in the centre of the 
Andes, eight thousand feet above the ocean. A plain-look- 
ing country gentleman travelling on the same route towards 
Serinza, entered into discourse as we rode along the plat- 
form of one of those singularly formed and sublime summits. 
He was conversant in traditions, and drew my attention to the 
plain of Sogamoso, which, though not very distinctly visible, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Was perceptible in the distance like a vast field with a low 
dark mound at its extremity. He mentioned some instances 
of the institutions of the natives, as he considered, indicative 
of a higher state of civilization than was usually allowed 
by European writers ; I urged that their superstitions were 
rather adverse to the idea of much refinement, as well as the 
absence of certain arts, and above all the want of iron ; and 
urged that high refinement, such as reason and humanity 
would inculcate, was not to be expected where the arts did 
not also flourish. I confess I spoke rather from a desire to be ci- 
vil and sociable, than with any other view, unless it was that I 
found some difficulty from a yet deficient readiness or want of 
confidence in my power of communicating my ideas in a lan- 
guage of which my knowledge was more incidental than stu- 
died. He descanted on the high civihzation of the Moscas, the 
works they had accomplished, the artificial nature of their chro- 
nology, and the progress they made, compared with other na- 
tive nations ; that they were clothed in fabrics of their own 
manufacture ; that they had a knowledge of gold, copper, 
and lead, if not of silver ; and it was supposed of tin ; that 
they had many refinements in the furniture of their temples, 
and domestic economy ; and that their agriculture was ex- 
tensive and methodically carried on. I ventured to remark 
that in some of their institutions, as well as those of the Peru- 
vians and Mexicans, I could perceive very remarkable coin- 
cidences with different sects of the Hindus ; that the Mex- 
icans appeared to resemble the worshippers of Seib or Chiven^ 
which was a system of demoniacal terror, and that, like the 
early Jews, they offered up human sacrifices ; that the Peru- 
vians resembled the worshippers of Fichenoiiy the Genius of 
good, the Preserver ; and that the Moscas were an interme- 
diate sect, who had discarded human sacrifice in the detail, 
and had only preserved it in rare cases, and in all other rites 
were very much like some worshippers of Vichenou. How 
they could come to derive their systems, I did not pretend 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 401 

to premise ; nor were my ideas, on this subject, peculiarly 
mine, 

" Ah ! senor ! said he, religion is constitutional, to a being 
who knows nothing but what he sees — understands it very 
little — and knows nothing of the cause, or the purpose, or 
the end of his being. His existence is a mystery, and he is 
therefore prone to mystery himself. The Moscas who oc- 
cupied those plains, had the same natural faculties as all 
others of the human species— and some among them found 
out, that they could be governed by fear — and they set up 
chimeras to supply the means by which they could hold the 
less discerning in subjection." But I observed, they had 
also called in the agency of hope. " O sir,'' said he, " hope 
is only the offspring of fear ; hope has no existence alone ; 
it may be the illusion of the miserable, upon whom fear has 
already laid its heavy manacles : but where there is happi- 
ness there can be no occasion for hope ; like that of its oppo- 
site—the presence of hope is already realized." 

I found some difficulty in comprehending him, and am 
not very certain that I have exactly expressed his sentiments, 
but I was not a little suprised to hear them from an inhabi- 
tant of the Andes — he drew my attention to a remarkable 
opening in a distant range of the cordillera on our left — it ap- 
peared to the eye as if a large space of the mountain had been 
sawn across, in a line very steep and sharply defined, at two 
places, to appearance, which was at a great distance, a quar- 
ter of a mile apart, and the intermediate mountain complete- 
ly removed ; I expressed my impression to him. " Yes," 
said he, " it is precisely what you have supposed it to be ; 
there is an evidence of the power of superstition ; but it is al- 
so a proof of the vastness of the population which once oc- 
cupied those regions — immense as it may appear, that ex- 
cavation is the work of human labour ; that is only a path 
opened to the plains, and it is but the intersecting point of 
an inclined plain which is continued four hundred miles into 

51 



403 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the Llanos, and of which the counterpart is on the other side 
of this mountain, which, though not of such magnitude, ex- 
tends into that plain of Sogomosa, which is now of such 
charming temperature, though tradition has represented it as 
before entirely sterile. B}^ the construction of new moun- 
tains, and changing the direction of the old, numerous 
streams have been dispersed over regions before sterile, and 
which are now rich, and fruitful, and salubrious." 

These circumstances were entirely new to me — and, I 
confess, doubtful ; but it w^ould not have been decorous to 
dispute what he gave only as tradition. The work he de- 
scribed appeared too much for human hands to perform, 
though I could not but frequently remark, on looking at the 
aspects around, that those sports of nature have certainly some- 
thing like the appearance of order, method, and art. I in- 
quired as to the supposed author, or chief, who directed these 
great works. He said "the tradition attributes them to a 
ZupUy named Sqjamuje^ who was at the same time the po- 
litical and sacerdotal chief; and he was a descendant of j8o- 
chicha^'* — and he added, he is considered as either Noah or 
AdaiUy I know not which. The nation was called Miskayas 
or Mozcas, and were here when the Spaniards arrived ; they 
were reputed to have expelled a race less civilized, but had 
taken up the religious system of those they had superseded, 
and had erected numerous splendid temples, which the Span- 
iards found when they invaded the country, and who over- 
threw and destroyed them— vindicating, as they said, the 
cause of God — as if God stood in need of human vindica- 
tors ; but their zeal, Stiior, was only the corner-stone of 
their avarice — and that zeal which consigned the poor Moz- 
cas to the flames, only to enrich the oppressors with the 
gold which embellished those structures." He added that 
" the tradition states, and it is another evidence of the civili- 
lization and numbers of this native nation, that the confla- 
gration made of their temples by the Spaniards, had not 
ceased at the end of five years !" 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 403 

We were now approaching the defiles which lead into the 
plains of Serinza, and our communicative fellow-traveller 
took a path more south, while we continued our route south- 
west, I took his information as he had given it, but as I 
had not made any note of it till we reached Santa Rosa, 
much of what he said escaped me, and I omit more which 
I am not sufficiently satisfied that I understood, and, as it 
was of an unusually bold cast of thought, I do not wish to 
risk misapprehension. It struck me that if this long, artifi- 
cial, inclined plane, really existed, that Bolivar must have 
known it, and made it his route from Manteeal'm 1819, in- 
stead of crossing the Paramo of Chisga. 

We continued to wind through the mazes of the moun- 
tains, their abrupt bluffs, their rocky ravines, and the flow of 
innumerable rivulets prattling over the pebbles. We at 
length reached a more tranquil, and deep, and broader stream, 
which came lingering along to meet us, as the plain of Se- 
rinza opened before us. The space was so extensive that 
the paramos in the distance north-west and west, seemed 
diminished, and stood like stacks of grain in groups. The 
plain spread broadly to the west, and some beautiful rivulets 
stole along in broad meanders. Here and there were patch- 
es of verdant grass, and again tufts of rank marsh grass and 
rushes, among which were seen the gray-bittern, but more 
numerously, the snow white-heron, marching like a grena- 
dier, in grave and regular cadence ; slowly lifting its long 
leg, distending and planting it abruptly, looking to the right 
and left the while, as if dressing by a guide on the flank of a 
platoon. 

To the left of the plain over which our road lay, there 
appeared a scene of desolation : — pita walls, in the greater 
part of the country, are the common fences and bounds of 
rich plantations, usually six or eight feet high, and capped 
with stones. After some four or five miles along the S' srt 
of the plain, in a south direction, we were intercepted by 



404 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

these pita walls, which crossed the whole plain in an oblique 
direction, about two points south of west ; here we entered 
upon a spacious causeway, thirty feet broad, with ditches 
on each side, and abundantly supplied with flowing water ; 
beyond the ditches pita walls, from which other walls issued 
in various angles, forming the bounds of fields wont to be 
covered by rich harvests, but which the armies of Spain had 
consigned to sterility and ruin. The walls of houses, whose 
riiins spoke their former amplitude, were every where visi- 
ble; we had not yet seen a glimpse of Serinza; we ap- 
proached more near the Sierra on the west side, but the long 
causeway and the long pita walls appeared still to promise 
no end. Here and there a chasm in the wall had been made 
by the unregulated stream, which had been visibly directed 
by art over an immense surface, for the purposes of irriga- 
tion ; the wantonness of the enemy, and the magnitude of 
the damage, aggravated the ruin by the hopelessness of at- 
tempting to mend or repair works which had been produced 
only by great opulence, and many years of systematic labour. 

While we were ambling along this endless causeway, 
amidst these apparently interminable ruins, the sergeant de- 
scried another Tartar a-head, and put his spur to his mule 
to speak him ; but in vain : as soon as he reconnoitered and 
perceived a lady in company, instead of passing along the 
route which we were going, he broke into a gap in the an- 
gle of a wall, and was seen flying along the plain diagonally, 
and leading the eye in the direction of the town, a glimpse 
of which only we yet saw. Having gained the point at 
which the outscout entered, we had to travel along the mar- 
gin of a very fine rapid stream, sufficient to supply ten thou- 
sand mills with water-power. 

Very soon a numerous cavalcade appeared, with which we 
were instantly in contact — the alcalde complimented us on 
our arrival, and made introductions to the notables of the place 
followed : we proceeded on to Serinza. The military com- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 405 

mandant, who was a colonel of militia, received us as we 
entered the town, and our quarters were a matter of amic:.- 
ble contention. We had not advanced quite to the town, 
when we recognised some officers in the Colombian uniform, 
on horseback, dashing towards us in the desperate style of 
riding so common in Colombia ; it was Colonel Lyster, 
and five other officers of the Irish legion, on their way 
to join the army under General Urdaneta. Lyster was 
from the same county in Ireland as General Devereux, 
(Wexford,) — he had served in the British army in Spain, 
and with the experience of war had acquired the fluent use 
of the Castilian language — after the peace in Europe, he 
pursued his profession to Colombia, where he had to encoun- 
ter hardships and endurances to which the soldier of Eu- 
rope is an entire stranger, besides the common perils and 
privations incident to war. 1 had experienced his kindness 
at Caracas, and we were gratified at meeting in the bosom 
of the Andes, as if we had been both from the banks of the 
Barro, Military life had not diminished his national viva- 
city ; he was warm-hearted, brave as gallant, busy every mo- 
ment of life, with as much earnestness as if he had resolved 
never to lose happiness for an instant — heedless of the past, 
and reckless of the future ; at home every where ; — the 
grave priest unpursed his gravity, and the lively Sehorita 
laughed outright at his sprightliness and unceasing gaiety. 
Sometimes indeed, the habits of command in Spain were 
visibly breaking over occasion, but it was the experienced 
observer only, who could trace the habit to the tone and 
the terms of expression. 

A sumptuous entertainment awaited us here, where, b} 
the same unexplained means as elsewhere, our approach was 
anticipated. The population of Serinza were more plain 
than gay in their attire, which, though it was warm as we 
rode along, must be cool in the night. Their kindness, 
though not so interesting as at Susacon, was very iippres- 



406 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

y^ive ; they appeared like quakers in their plainness and sim- 
plicity, but they entered into the spirit of the festivity with 
as much glee as other people, notwithstanding their grave 
habits. Our visit certainly afforded them much gratification ; 
and the concourse of both sexes at the house of the com- 
mandant, where we lodged, was numerous, and afforded a 
most excellent specimen of the materials which are to supply 
future citizens to the republic. Though we were not very 
much fatigued, we thought it due to our hospitable enter- 
tainers, not to keep it up late; and we contrived, with the 
aid of our friend Colonel Lyster, to separate, so that we 
went to rest by ten o'clock. 

Having already spoken of the appearance of the plain, and 
the ruins of former extensive plantations, it may be proper 
to notice its position. The town, which consists of houses 
of a single story, resembles Gritja in its distribution and 
extent, the streets crossing at right angles, new churches, 
many scattered cottages on the extremities and between the 
mountains, vi'hich are on the rear or west side of the town. 
The impression all along made by the appearance of the 
mountains, on the west side, from the plains, was that while 
the plains were progressively more elevated, the mountains 
became progressively lower ; and this impression I felt after 
passing Mendoza, with very little variation. The mountain 
behind Serin za appeared lower than the hills on the south 
side of the Guayra at Caracas ; and the town not half a 
mile from their base, but, like the plains generally, it in- 
clined, from the mountain foot, gently towards the ground 
watered by so many abundant rivulets, and made remarka- 
ble by its endless ruin of pita walls. 

The continuation of the road over a not very lofty moun- 
tain is to the south of the town, and we left Serinza on the 
28th, escorted by our friends of the municipality, and Colo- 
nel Lyster and his friends, who were on their route to join 
the army under Urdaneta, and parted with us two miles out 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 407 

of town. The paramo of Serinza presented, contrary to the 
usual features of paramos, a succession of beautiful slopes, 
surrounded by plains, in pasture, covered with countless 
flocks of horned cattle, sheep, horses, and mules ; clumps 
of foliage, bearing the appearance of orchards, with culti- 
vated fields adjacent. The forests seemed to have retired 
to the hills, leaving the black and chocolate- coloured loam 
to tempt the ploughman's courtship. There were some 
fences here and there, seeming to be intended to keep out 
sheep or horses ; and, as we passed some of them, on our 
route, we found them composed of saplings, sunk in the 
earth, at about six inches apart, held below by bandages of 
bejuca, interlaid in five or six strands, a foot or eighteen 
inches from the ground ; another band, about six or seven 
feet high, and the saplings eighteen inches or two feet 
higher, perfectly firm, and more effective than our best 
Pennsylvania post and rail. 

Seeing a plough at work on one of those beautiful slopes, 
to the left of the road, which a single ploughman, with a 
pair of bullocks, was preparing to redeem from nature, and 
bring into productiveness, I suffered my party to go on, and 
rode up to the husbandman, whose track lay towards the 
road ; he stopped his team, and we entered into discourse. 
The plough was my principal object, and the manner of its 
application. It was very simple ; art had done very little for 
it. It was a single piece of timber, which nature had bent 
in such a line, that, while about four or four and a half feet 
lay along the ground, the remainder rose" in about an angle 
of forty degrees, forming a single handle. On the part which 
lay along the ground, a piece of hard wood had been dove- 
tailed into the side of the shaft, with a very small inclination 
obliquely forward beneath, and not longer than four or five 
inches. This piece of wood, about two feet from the head 
of the beam, served as a coulter ; indeed it served all the 
purposes, for there was no soil-board, nor any thing that indi- 



408 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

cated the turning up of a sod or deep ploughing. The earth 
was but indifferently scratched, though not always conceal- 
ing the short grass. A hole in the front of the beam re- 
ceived two ropes of cow-hide, whose other extremities were 
wound round the horns of the pair of noble cattle which 
dragged along this rude plough ; it differs in nothing but 
being larger, and the cattle much larger, than the plough of 
Hindustan, and that of Egypt. 

The paiscmo was very inquisitive, and heard my account 
of our ploughs with attention, and, with a pencil, I gave 
him a rough sketch, and explained the power gained by two 
handles in directing the line of the furrow ; the uses of the 
soil-board, and the turning over of the sod. He expressed 
a wish, if it xvere possible^ to obtain an American plough. I 
gave him a side sketch, and a separate sketch of the coulter, 
and the soil- board. He prayed me to recall my friends, and 
to spend a few days with him ; he had a very good wife, he 
said, who would love the Seiiorita. I excused myself, and 
thanked him. He was very curious about America, and 
having about me two small books I gave them to him, and 
he expressed great pleasure at the gift, and said he wanted 
books very much. This husbandman, and others whom I 
had intercourse with, remote even from the great cities, 
and from the sea- coast, very obviously displayed a con- 
sciousness of the change which the revolution had made in 
their condition. Men accustomed to liberal institutions, 
and accustomed to talk and think of their rights, may be 
supposed to enjoy the removal of some abuse, or the few 
securities which are established by legislative power, with 
a suitable satisfaction ; but, from what I have seen in Co- 
lombia, the emotion and the gratification appeared to me 
more intense, and it is not unnatural that it should be so ; I 
have conversed with persons whose countenances flushed 
with delight, a sort of emotion between exultation and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 409 

doubt of the reality of their escape from the multiplied ty- 
ranny of their former condition. 

After I had transcribed my journal for the present publi- 
cation, some extracts appeared in a New York paper from 
" Travels in Colombia^ in the years 1822 and 1823, by G. 
Mollien, Translated from the French, London, 1824." — 
The remarks of the American editor were at least indis- 
creet. Mollien's statements are at once repugnant to just 
ideas, both of the political and moral state of the Colombian 
republic ; I conceive it then to be an act of necessary pro- 
priety to notice the work, and disabuse society, so far at least 
as this volume may circulate. 

I had some intercourse with M. Mollien at Bogota ; I had 
been there before his arrival, and I was there after his depar- 
ture. His being an emissary of France, with no good pur- 
pose, was obvious in his deportment, and the indecorum 
of his ordinary conversation was very generally known ;— 
even at the hospitable table of the resident minister of the 
United States, (Colonel Todd,) he betra3'^ed an hostility so 
extravagant, not only to the Colombian institutions, but to 
all republican government, that was extremely painful to 
the feelings of the American minister, and which the laws of 
hospitality only prevented him from personally noticing. It 
was, however, noticed by an American, who was of the par- 
ty, and in such a manner as to be highly gratifying to the 
minister, as it was unexpected, and conclusive upon the sub- 
jects of Mollien's asperities, and ultra assumptions. My 
opportunities enabled me to know, that the government of 
Colombia was apprised of the nature of his mission ; he pre- 
sented no credentials as a public agent, yet his conduct had an 
air of that kind of insolence which little men display, " dressed 
out in a brief authority." The government considered him 
as a spy, but the members of it treated him with forbearance, 
and even an attention that only concealed the derision in 
which he was held. When he intimated a desire to visit 

52 



410 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Quito, which the government was apprised to be his origi- 
nal destination, he was politely advised not to visit QuitOj 
because, if he should be found there, he might not find the 
same indulgence that he experienced at Bogota ; and that 
when he thought proper to leave Bogota, it must be by the 
route by which he entered it. The deportment as well as 
the discourse of this person was ordinary, his temper morose, 
and his manners had nothing of the ease and suavity of a 
French gentleman, 

I am induced to notice M. Mollien at this point of my 
journey, because Serinza was the farthest eastern bound of his 
travels in Colombia, though he has pretended to give some 
account of Caracas and other parts of Venezuela of which he 
was never within five hundred miles. His account of Serinza, 
which has been noticed and faithfully described in the preced- 
ing pages, is a tolerable specimen of his fidelity, and the exact- 
ness of his descriptions. I have not altered nor added a word 
to what I had written concerning Serinza, and if I did not know 
that he had been in Colombia, I should have doubted, upon the 
evidence of his book, whether he had ever seen Serinza or 
Sai^ta Rosa. I shall here notice what he says of Serinza, and 
afterwards of Santa Rosa, and then pursue my own course, 
and, if my materials should not swell beyond the bulk of the 
proposed volume, I shall examine M. Mollien's book more at 
large. 

" Nothing is so dismal," says M. Mollien, "as Serinza, 
seen from below ; its frowning brow hidden in clouds, vi'hile 
the summit is rarely illuminated by a cheerful sky." p. 97. 
I have already described Serinza, which is not to be seen 
from below ; it stands but very little elevated on the north- 
west angle of a spacious plain, at the foot of a very low range 
of verdant hills, which range east and west, not lofty enough 
to be called mountains ; and the town is in fact not to be seen 
on approaching it from the eastward until close upon it, from 
the interposition of beautiful and lofty hedge rows. If, 
through misapprehension, he has given the name of Serinza 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 411 

to the paramo south of the town two miles, he has made a 
mistake so far, though " the brow- hidden clouds and sum- 
mit rarely illumined with a cheerful sky," would describe 
every paramo, indeed every mountain in the world, for a few 
moments or hours in the year, but is by no means true of 
this paramo, or any other in Colombia ; which, though fre- 
quently clouded, are not always sunless, and we passed this 
paramo on our route, when the sun was in its fulness and 
glory, and the landscape, in the whole range of vision many 
miles around, presented some of the richest prospects both 
in beauty and productions to be found in the universe. 
This paramo is, in fact, a limb of the great Cordillera of 
Chisga^ and is usually called the paramo of Sogamozo, be- 
tween which beautiful region, and the plains and blooming 
valleys to three- fourths of the periphery ; and it is the sepa- 
rating screen on the north-west; unfortunately too for the au- 
thority of the traveller, it is never covered with snow. It 
was on the face of this beautiful paramo, I conversed with 
the young husbandman at his plough, who was scratching 
over a soil as rich as the bottoms of Kentucky, or the rice- 
fields of Burdwan in Bengal ; fields which produced maize, 
wheat, and barley nowhere surpassed, and two crops in the 
year ; yet, from what follows, it would seem that the travel- 
ler was amidst the mountains of Norway or Nova Scotia at 
the same season of the year. 

M. Mollien continues : " some springs, whose livid and 
icy waters are not potable, escape from the barren sides of 
the mountain, but never produce on them that fertility to 
which they contribute on the lower regions ; muddy pools, 
choked up with bulrushes and other aquatic plants, occupy 
the bottom of the valley. The scream of the white heron, 
when the winds are hushed, is all that breaks in upon its 
silence. The earth produces nothing but a short kind of 
grass, eagerly sought after by animals." Now, whether this 
be intended for the mountain or the plain is scarcely ascer- 



41B VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

tainable ; but the temper in which these descriptive traits are 
given must be manifest. He could not but see the immense 
ruin which covered many thousand acres on the plain ; that 
they were marked by the desolation of war : that Serinza 
had been particularly obnoxious to the Spaniards he might 
have known, and it may have given to his vision a jaundiced 
influence. When Bolivar had, after a march of seventy. two 
days from Mantecal, crossed the snowy sides of Chisga, he 
reached Serinza with his troops almost naked, without shoes, 
and in ill health ; they had lost the greater part of their horses, 
and lived for some part of the way upon some of them. He 
and his troops were received at Serinza with acclamations 
and affection ; the troops were lodged, fed, clothed, and shod, 
and the horses they had lost replaced ; those that were jaded, 
but survived, were taken care of, and substitutes provided. 
A people capable of such magnanimity must be virtuous 
[ and opulent ; but the generosity they displayed was not con- 
sistent with the wretchedness which M. Mollien describes. 
The Spaniards had desolated the plantations, whose walls 
were the testimonials of a former vast cultivation as of pre- 
sent ruin, and whose rivulets, wandering out of their former 
well- constructed channels, might have shewn that, though 
desolation was visible, it was not the sterility of nature, and 
that no such walls, or artificial channels for irrigation, would 
have been erected on a sterile soil. Whether his temper of 
mind closed his eyes and his understanding, is not material ; 
those streams of crystal water, which flow in abundance 
through very full channels, I can verify had nothing livid in 
them ; and if, in a temperate region, producing coffee, the icy 
coldness of the water be a misfortune or a reproach, the town 
of Serinza is indeed unfortunate, and reproachable for the 
coldness as well as for the wholesome purity and crystal clear- 
ness of these streams, which the Spaniards sent vagabondizing 
over the plain. He finds a bottom and a valley at Serinza. 
In relation to the mountains all round, it may be called a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 4l3 

valley, but it is rather a spacious plain ; and this plain is its 
only bottom. The beautiful white heron is the inhabitant 
of ail the savannas or plains on which there are pure streams, 
and on the sublime plain of Bogota is considered, by persons 
who take pleasure in the caprices of nature, as among its 
most beautiful ornaments. It is not a noisy bird ; though 
its screams are not perfect melodies, yet they are not such 
as to grate the ears or affect the nerves, unless perhaps those 
of the hypochondriacal — and I confess that the suUenness 
and discontent which clouded the visage of this gentleman, 
even when every one else was convivial, led me to devise an 
excuse for his moroseness in this disease. The heron is a beau- 
tiful bird, of exquisitely fair plumage ; our sergeant, who had 
a shot at every thing, killed one to procure feathers for his 
grenadier cap ; the body, as it appears standing, or in flight, 
looks as large as a barn-door fowl ; when in the hand, the 
plumage is so delicate, downy, and light, that the body is 
not as heavy as that of a pullet. 

If the earth now produces nothing wdthin the pita ruins 
which were before the Spanish troops had desolated them, 
the scenes of rich production and abundance, their former 
fertility is the best answer to him who discovers sterility in 
a ruin produced by the troops of the adored Ferdinand, not 
quite two years before. 

He subjects the town to the reproach which, if it were 
real, belongs to the cloudy paramo above, which he says, *' si 
ponebrdvo^^'' (when out of humour) " threatens the traveller :" 
by this personification of the clouds or mountains we under- 
stand they come on purpose to threaten him ; in the same 
way as at Santa Rosa, where we shall find him charging the 
unconscious people of conspiring against him, while they were 
asleep, and making the heavy rains a party in the conspiracy; 
though the poor people probably never heard, even to this day, 
of such a person as M. Mollien, who describes " the winds 
loaded with vapour, (which must of course be unlike the 



414 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

winds in any other mountains;) thick darkness covering the 
earth, (which happens nowhere else;) and concealing every 
trace of road." In truth, I have often found it difficult to 
discover a trace of a road at noon day. But these republican 
clouds are no respecters of persons ; and as this poor gentle- 
man very often lost himself dreaming of his own consequence, 
to the amusement of many who marked him, it is not sur- 
prising he should take umbrage at the clouds of Serinza. It 
is scarcely necessary to remark that in another place he con- 
tradicts this asperity of the clouds ; for he says, in another 
page, " when I traversed Serinza, the temperature, though 
cold, was bearable, but the air was excessively dry:'''* this is 
literally blowing hot and cold, wet and dry, out of the same 
mouth. Flis account of the device of a host at the Venta de 
Basto, where he passed a night, deserves notice : — " The 
prejudice of the inhabitants of the Cordillera against fire, which 
they conceive to be unwholesome, prevents them from light- 
ing any; I was benumbed, although my birth was the least 
exposed to the outward air, and was wrapped up in thick 
woollen cloaks. Sec. The cold, however, did not last all 
night, for my host had conceived the singular idea of bringing 
up a great number of cats, which were trained to place 
themselves upon the feet of travellers ; I had two of them^ 
whose thick furs kept me very warm.'''' p. 99. This story 
merits record in the history of the feline species, and may- 
have a place in the same chapter with the fight of the Kil- 
kenny cats — equally authentic. 

I shall leave M. Moliien till we reach the next stage, where 
we shall find the dignity of the secret agent of the most 
Christian and Catholic kings, exposed to conspiring rains, 
alcaldes, judges, and curates, who went to sleep in order to 
prepare a ducking for him at midnight. 



415 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

Leave Seriiiza — Santa Rosa — Striking resemblance of Washington city and the 
Potomac — the usual reception — Dr.'Origen — Catholic clergy and Liberty — ■ 
effects of clerical fanaticism — the beauty of the youth — Entertainments — Pa- 
triotic sentiments — depart forPaypa — liberal priests— Library at Paypa — M, 
Mollien's account of a conspiracy — Dos Diablos Azulos — Remarks. 

The commandant of Serinza was a colonel of militia^ a 
plain country farmer of about six feet high, and a well-filled 
figure, with an open countenance, and a cheerfulness which in- 
dicated true contentedness, and a right estimation of freedom : 
he made no pretensions, but understood his duties. The 
people in this district, as I have observed in other regions 
where the temperature is a medium between the extremes of 
heat and coldi are taller than in the warm vallies, or those of 
the cooler paramos. Before our departure, the commandant 
had repeatedly urged us to remain with them some time, and 
the females of the family and town were still more pressing, 
from a desire to be acquainted with my daughter. We were, 
however, constant to our purpose. There were many intel- 
ligent citizens in this place, but it was impossible to enter 
very connectedly into discourse from the shortness of the 
time, and the number of visitors. We understood, however, 
in a sort of effort to vindicate themselves as to the ruins over 
which we passed, that it was not their neglect which caused 
them; the Spaniards had found the bounties of nature too 
widely spread over the valleys and plains all around, to be 
within the compass of their power to destroy ; and they 
had devastated Serinza in vengeance and as an example of 
what they would do every where if it was in their power ; 
the neighbouring rich country had therefore escaped ravage 
and desolation, so that if we should only remain a few days, 



416 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

we should find a numerous society solicitous to show their 
good wishes towards us from the surrounding plantations. 
Our refusals were expressed with very sincere regrets, as in 
truth our inclinations were there, as in many other places, to 
remain some time. The commandant, however, determined 
not to part from us so soon; and, as we would not stay, he 
would go with us ; and, in order to show how kind he could 
be, he intimated, that, after so long a journey, our riding 
mules would be better for a relief ; he therefore provided for 
us riding and baggage horses, so that our mules travelling 
without burden were well refreshed. The horses generally 
throughout the route are of a low stature, usually twelve, 
seldom fourteen hands high ; at Serinza they were something 
above the height that is common, longer limbs and neck, 
but very full breast and haunches. Those animals appear to 
be afiected, as to stature, by the characteristic features of the 
country. Where the steeps are frequent and extreme, the 
declivities rough and wild, the horses appear to be short 
limbed and more muscular ; and where the country is more 
level, or not steep and rugged, and the temperature mild, the 
horses appear to be longer bodied and longer limbed ; though 
what we should call a raw-boned horse is an object not to be 
seen, forage every where grovvs so rapid and luxuriant. 

We gradually gained the beautiful sides of the paramo, 
and found ourselves at the upper range of the road, almost 
unconscious that we were ascending, until winding beneath 
a sublime forest we found that the vast plains, pastures, plan- 
tation houses, sugar fields, and a wide spread culture mixed 
with forest clumps and silvery rivulets, lay open to an ex- 
tent of which the eye could make no measure or bound, 
but the faint blue cloudy line, immensely distant, in the 
south-east, and south, and south-west. We were descend- 
ing with this rich region spread before us, when, almost at 
our feet to appearance, but really four miles distant, a town 
lay before us of a very neat aspect, and by its position pro- 
ducing: such an emotion as is felt on revisitinsr, after a lon,^ 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 417 

absence, a place that had been before familiar and agreeable. 
I was not at first conscious of this involuntary analogy ; the 
town stood on the easy slope and bottom of the valley on its 
north-west side, and the plain extended to the south and 
south-east, skirted in the distance by a range of mountains, 
which seemed to be the rim of the bason of which the valley 
or plain below was the bottom ; the sides all round sloping 
inward to that bottom. Across the plain from the west, and 
pursuing its course to the south-east, a beautiful river revealed 
its current by the tremulous silvery light reflected from the 
sun. This feature of the landscape soon identified the resem- 
blance of which I was not before conscious ; but it was a 
very striking likeness of the position and valley of the city 
of Washington, as seen from the brow of the Capitol Hill. 
The river, however, was not so spacious as the Potomac, 
and the town, which was that of Santa Rosa, was more com- 
pact : the neatness of the white-washed houses, the clean tiled 
roofs, and the rectangular intersection of the streets on a closer 
approach, broke up the similarity,- though the view in the 
distance remained still striking. The brightness of the sun 
gave the appearance of the month of May at Washington. 

The curates and corporation here came out as usual to re- 
ceive us — and I must here observe, in order that it should 
not be attributed to an improper vanity, that I am so parti- 
cular in noticing these incidents, because it is at once an act 
of justice to those good people, and goes to show manners 
and hospitable dispositions, better than any general terms 
could do. Several of the secular clergy came out on this 
occasion, and an amicable and good-humoured conten- 
tion arose among them, who should do us the most honour 
— many more joined us in the suburb, but they led us into 
the Plaza Mayor^ and halted, as I understood it, at the re- 
sidence of Dr. Origen, a secular clergyman of very prepos- 
sessing appearance and manners, and, what struck me — not 
with surprise, but as a new occurrence, he wore at his 

53 



418 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

breast the ribbon and medal of the order of Libertadors^ 
an institution, in all respects, resembling our order of Cm- 
cinnatus. I never before could reconcile myself to such de- 
corations, which, ever since I had the exercise of a free 
mind, I have looked upon only as marks set upon man, to 
show by what baubles they may be deluded or bought. Up- 
on analysing my feelings on this occasion, I found that, by 
a rapid association of ideas, I had identified the catholic 
priest and the apostle of liberty, and excused the bauble for 
mitigating the contradictions. Not that I believe the ca- 
tholic priests to be more hostile to human freedom than any 
other. Priests of all religions, Christians, Moslems, Bra- 
mins, or Jews, seek to govern mankind for themselves^ and 
are prone to adhere to any form of power, which promises 
them their peculiar domination. Where they are other- 
wise, they are no more than exceptions to a general rule. I 
have known many catholic priests, and some in Colombia, 
besides the worthy man at Santa Rosa, who are ardent lovers 
of human rights. The overthrow of the Cortes, in Spain, 
was the work of the monks ; they were the instruments 
of Monteverde, after the earthquake of 1812, and had not 
the fear of France and the same cry of atheism been raised 
in Venezuela, on that occasion, which was raised in Spain in 
1808, the career of the revolution, if not jeopardized, might 
have been at least more tardy in its process. The men of 
enlarged minds, in Colombia, saw that Spain must have 
been subjected by the legions of Napoleon, had not the 
monks produced that fanatical rage, which undertook to ex- 
tirpate men under colour of vindicating the Almighty ! — 
and when the same fanaticism was adopted, and upon instruc- 
tions to that effect from Europe, the friends of American li- 
berty saw the necessity of passivity, as by means of this delu- 
sion independence would be better assured ; since, if France 
should gain the tide, the difficulties of resistance would be 
greater than to Spain. These ideas do not accord with 
those of many, who would have it believed that there was a 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 419 

sort of national dislike in South America to the French, and 
who would have it believed the South Americans were dri- 
ven by necessity to independence. In truth, no nation of 
Europe was so much preferred in South America, as the 
French ; the French language had been for three fourths of a 
century carefully cultivated ; the French writings, introduced 
by stealth, the favourite study ; and at this day few men of 
a good education are to be found in Spanish America, who 
are unacquainted with that language. The patriotic leaders 
did not wish that Spain should be subjected to France, not 
from love of Spain nor hatred to France, but because independ- 
ence was to be secured by the failure of France. The eccle- 
siastics, in this way, unconsciously contributed to the success 
of the revolution. I have had the satisfaction of much inter- 
course with clerical men in Colombia, whose political princi- 
ples were the cause of our acquaintance— and whose prin- 
ciples in every relation, I found such as would do honovir 
to virtue and liberty in any coun try. 

Dr. Origen lost nothing of the impression made on me by 
his first appearance, on the interchange of sentiments ; he was 
cheerful, frank, and persuasive, and his political opinions I 
thought (perhaps because they exactly squared with my own) 
the best in the world ; he was a perfect master of modern as 
well as ancient history, and talked with equal mastery of the 
wars of Peloponnesus, and the thirty years war, the Dutch, 
French, and North American revolutions, the constitution 
of England and that of Sparta, and those of the United States ; 
he knew even the more recent history of the United States, 
and could name our triumphs and our disasters. This in the 
bosom of the Andes was a matter of surprize, and I regret- 
ted when the good-nature of the company prevented a more 
protracted intercourse ; as the civil and military appeared to 
contend with the ecclesiastics who should be most kind, it was 
necessary to render equal respect to their kind dispositions. I 
know not whether it was a stated day of festivity, but not only 
the house but the plaza was covered with people of every de- 



4S0 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

scription ; it seemed to be a general holiday, and every body 
uncommonly well clad, and neat in their style of attire. The 
complexion of the people generally was here more than com- 
monly fair, and the females rosy, much fairer generally than 
at Caracas, of whom we had a concourse to pay their res- 
pects to the senorita blanca del America Norte. However 
complimentary the title of fair A?nerican, the young people 
of Santa Rosa were so numerously of the same complexion, 
that it would not be overstraining probabilities, to presume 
that the town derived its sanctification from the roses on their 
cheeks, which rival those on the luxuriant hedges around the 
town ; many among them would have appeared lovely among 
the nymphs on the banks of the Kuban, the fairest daugh- 
ters of Erin, or the blue-eyed damsels of Delecarlia. 

A large company of both sexes sat down to a dejeune de la 
fourchette, with whose ease, gaiety, and contentedness, I felt 
inexpressible satisfaction. The table service here was as 
complete as in one of our own cities : china, glass, knives, 
and silver forks, and plate of different kinds. The fruit 
were luxuriant, and the sweetmeats, in which, from Caracas 
to Bogota, they excel; chocolate and coffee in the greatest 
perfection, and of which we partook gratefully. We return- 
ed to the saloon, and answered to such inquiries as they 
made concerning the United States, Washington, and Frank- 
lin. I afforded the gentlemen whom I sat with an unex- 
pected gratification, when they inquired about Franklin, by 
informing them that Lieutenant Bache, the youth who was 
conversing with a group on the opposite side of the saloon, 
was a direct descendant of Dr. Franklin, and, more than that, 
perhaps the best picture of the doctor, at the same age, in 
form and features, that could be found. They were parti- 
cularly pleased, too, when I told them of the resemblance 
which the valley of Santa Rosa bore to that of Washington 
City in the first bloom of spring. All the clergymen present 
were gay and familiar. Finding the matrons had engrossed 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 421 

me for some time, they contrived to carry me off, and to 
make such inquiries as suggested themselves, principally on 
political and social subjects. I gave them all I had of politics 
and opinions on what they touched, and congratulated them 
on the nearly closed war and their triumphs. They were 
conscious that much was yet to be done to give society its 
completion, and one of them, when it was observed that 
great sacrifices were made, replied, that it was vt'orth more 
than it cost ; the loss of lives and sufferings of families (I 
think it was Dr. Origen who said it) were great, for *' those 
who have died in the cause have only passed away a few years 
before us, but liberty and independence will remain to fu- 
ture ages and endless generations." Our time was so con- 
stantly occupied by the kindness and curiosity of this hospi- 
table people, that we had no opportunity to see more of the 
town than we had seen on our entrance, and from the veran- 
dah of the house, which overlooked the great square, and 
what we saw on our departure. 

Our intention, on reaching Santa Rosa, was to take a 
plain breakfast of chocolate and fruit, spend an hour or two 
in seeing the town and some of its manufactures, and then 
move forward twelve or fourteen miles before dinner. But 
we had been too much engrossed and pleased to be conscious 
of the time, and were about preparing to depart, when we 
were informed that dinner was already on the table, and to 
which we were immediately conducted. The description of 
feasts and entertainments so frequently, has an air of epicu- 
rism in it ; but none of us were of that cast ; our powers of 
abstinence and our taste for rough fare had been already well 
tested; we had travelled whole days without halting for 
food, and our fricasees, with now and then a turkey pout, 
a quarter of kid, with fruit, were our greatest luxuries; in- 
deed, our rough fare was to us a constant source of merri- 
ment. But, as it is in the domestic and social relations the 
state of society and manners is best seen, as well as the cha- 



4S3 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

racteristics of the climate and civilized state, it would be to 
omit what is essential, if incidents such as these were not noti» 
ced, even though it may seem like vanity to describe the fa- 
. vours heaped upon us. The dinner had been in silent prepara- 
tion while we were in conversation, and we found it not only 
excellent, but sumptuous ; the snowy cauliflower and the ar- 
tichoke superior to any I had seen before, besides the rich 
variety of edible roots and plants, of which the names were 
not known to me ; the coos lettuce ; eschallots, the want of 
which, in our American cookery, is so remarkable ; game 
of different kind, pheasant, partridge, and quail — but we had 
here, in the midst of the Andes, the vermicelli soups of 
France and Italy, and the tasteless oil of Florence, at what 
cost may be imagined, seeing that the ocean was far distant, 
and these exotics found their way amidst the Andes on the 
backs of mules. The viands altogether, and the wines, 
could not be found superior or more abundant any where. 
The wines were not inoperative, for we had hrindis on 
every side, in which La Repuhlica del Norte was not indif- 
ferently drank. A young, married lady, who was beautiful 
and accomplished, gave me much pleasure by giving as her 
sentiment — " Perpetual friendship between the republican 
families of the New World." I found she had been edu- 
cated in the United States, and had returned about eight 
months before her marriage. Further detail would be 
superfluous. 

These good people would have delayed us longer — when 
we wished to go at noon, it was too soon or too warm — - 
it was now too late — and, moreover, that a bull fight would 
take place at three o'clock, for which purpose the angles of 
the plaza were already enclosed with a stockade. The last 
persuasive was not such as would be likely to prevail, though 
courtesy would not permit us to say so, — and we expressed 
our thanks far from what was equal to our feelings — -and we 
departed: our worthy commandant of Serinza still deter- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 423 

mined to keep us company, and we were several miles be- 
yond Santa Rosa before he took leave, with the kindest emo- 
tions of a generous, social heart. 

It was half past two when we left Santa Rosa. Dr. Origen 
had introduced me, among others, to a Franciscan friar, Fra, 
Joachim Garcia^ who also accompanied us on our route for 
several successive days. As we approached Paypa, Padre 
Rincon^ the respectable curate of that village, with several of 
his parishioners, met us about four miles from the place, and 
conducted us to his dwelling, where a handsome entertain- 
ment awaited our arrival. This venerable curate is much 
advanced in years, celebrated for his hospitality and liberal 
principles, and is particularly friendly to Americans ; his 
attentions to us correspond with his reputation. I had let- 
ters to him, which I did not produce till he was about to 
retire : he asked why I had not given them to him before ; 
and he was much amused and pleased by the reason I as- 
signed — that. I wished to be his guest upon his own good 
will, rather than upon the recommendation of any third per- 
son ; and he laughed heartily, and thanked me, and shook 
me by the hand for the compliment. It was nine o'clock 
when he finally retired, and, as we moved at the dawn of 
morning, we saw him no more, leaving a billet of thanks, 
with our cards of names. The spacious hall in which we had 
sat, was his parlour, library, and refectory ; and his books, 
though generally of dogmatical theology, had among them 
some few works of science and polite literature, among them 
Totze's History of Europe, the works of La Vega, and other 
Spanish writers. He spoke with great zeal of the United 
States, and how much mankind was indebted to their revo- 
lution ; he thought that the population of Colombia would 
augment even more rapidly than the United States; and that 
many thousands of the former population, supposed to be 
killed, were now settled in remote valleys, from which they 
would not return ; but, added he, population will soon catch 



4S4 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

them. Like others whom I conversed with, he was surprised 
to learn that our clergymen of all sects wore no costume in 
society. This impression is no more than a proof of the in- 
fluence of habit, which confounds what is partially usual with 
what is universally right. 

I have stated our reception at Santa Rosa, and described 
the country, town, and people, as I saw them ; I might have 
said much more of the town, which Palacio Faxar describes 
as " the most beautiful town in a beautiful province ;" and I 
might, while the topics were fresh, have particularised what 
I had been informed of as to the productions of agriculture, 
and of manufactures, carried on there, in cotton, wool, 
leather, hats, pottery, and other things. The account given 
of Serinza, by M. Mollien, induces me to notice his extra- 
vagant misrepresentations ; what I have said of Santa Rosa 
above, was written before I saw M. Mollien's book ; and I 
cannot pass over what he has said of this beautiful town with- 
out offering some remarks upon the preposterous things he 
has uttered, though in such a way as to expose his own ab- 
surdity : for example, he says — 

" It was night when I entered Santa Rosa: hospitality 
is every where exercised with so much generosity^ that I 
thought, notwithstanding the lateness of the hour, I should 
find no difficulty in getting a lodging ; but I was deceived ; 
every door was closed against me: I knocked at the doors of 
the alcaldes and the civil judge, but they refused opening 
them, on the pretext that their masters were absent: the 
curate, to whom I applied as a last resource, did not manifest 
more charity than his neighbours. It was late, my clothes 
were wet through, I had not eaten all day, and found myself 
obliged to lie in the street ; I was, indeed, in much distress ; 
all xvere deaf to my prayers ; one only, and that for the second 
time a woman, took compassion on me, and offered me half 
her cabin ; I joyfully shared it; and although it was difficult 
to sleep among the pots of chicha and heaps of onions with 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 425 

which it was stored, I passed a delicious night in comparison 
with that reserved for me by the inhospitality of the inhabi- 
tants of Santa Rosa, by Hstening to the rain which fell in 
torrents." 

This account of his adventures in Santa Rosa is so mar- 
vellous, that it is only by considering him as accompanied 
by el Diablo Consejo, or that sort of miraculous power which 
le Diable Boiteux exercised, when he made stone-walls 
transparent, and not only heard the conversation, but pene- 
trated the thoughts and the dreams of those whom he saw 
from the house-tops. Like Asmodeus, he enters the town at 
midnight, and, though, every where else and to every body 
else, the people are hospitable and generous — here they had 
gone to sleep, out of sheer antipathy to him ; even the ser- 
vants are, according to him, their masters out of town, 
which, though not unusual, this Asmodeus Mollien infers 
was an incident of the conspiration— for they were all alike-— 
the masters who did not hear, and the servants who did hear, 
deaf to hi^ prayers ; and even the curate was as great a con- 
spirator as the rest ; by all of whom he was obliged to sleep in 
the street — though it appears he did not sleep in the street — 
for he passed a delicious night in comparison with that re- 
served for him by the inhabitants of Santa Rosa. Now, to 
make this Asmodean story consistent, he must have apprised 
the folks of his intended arrival before the people went to 
bed, or to the country ; and the curate or the magistrates 
must, besides their ordinary functions, have had the power 
of reserving torrents of rain to be poured out on him: — he 
continues — 

" The name of Santa Rosa sounds well to the ear, and 
from the regularity of the houses and streets, the towii, in 
some degree, answers the pleasing ideas to which the appel- 
lation gives rise. But the temperature was very cold ; and, 
as the environs produce nothing but corn, potatoes ^ and onions., 
the population would not be very rich, had it not, as a re- 

54 



4S6 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

source^ several manufactures of woollen hats and cotton stujfs, 
much in request among their neighbours in Socorro. Goi- 
tres are very common here," p. 94, 95. EngUsh translation. 

If any thing could form an apology for absurdity uttered 
with so much deliberation, it would, be found only in men- 
tal or bodily disease ; for romance, absurdity is allowable 
machinery ; but here are genii, by the Spaniards called Zios 
Diablos AzuloSi in our language the Blue Devils, whose in- 
fluence, indeed, appeared in the visage and deportment of 
M. MoUien, all the time I knew him at Bogota ; under this 
gloomy influence alone could his wayward imagination con- 
vert a hospitable people into conspirators against him, whom 
they had never heard of — and made the rains of heaven a 
party in reserve to the conspiracy, to drive him into the 
arms of a poor Chicha xuoman : it was midnight when he 
entered — he sees nobody but the Chicha woman, he passes 
a delicious night in listening to the torrents of rain ; and 
departs before day — yet he not only reprobates the magis- 
tracy and the curate — but he discovers the poverty of the 
place — nay, that " Goitres are very common." 

Malevolence characterises this account, and it is the per- 
vading spirit of his whole book. I should pass it over with 
these few rerharks, but that the collision produced by such 
extravagance leads often to a better knowledge than might 
otherwise be produced, concerning places thus disfigured by 
hypochondria^ or a worse impulse. 

After Bolivar, in 1819, crossed the cordillera from Man- 
tecal, and the sufferings of his army required a temporary 
repose in an abundant country, he selected Santa Rosa, as 
at once the most fruitful and salubrious part of the luxuriant 
department of Boyacca. The greater portion of the popu- 
lation, old and young, were, I believe, assembled in the 
plaza while we remained there ; the visitors of both sexes, 
and of all ages, were numerous, and the most respectable 
people; and as the prevalence of the goitre was a subject 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 427 

of constant observation and comparison, since I savt' the first 
near Truxillo, I feel satisfied that the goitre could not have 
escaped my observation ; for if there were any so afflicted, 
they certainly did not come abroad that day ; and it cannot 
be presumed that M. Mollien's opportunities were more 
favourable. 

I have often heard objected to the scholastic system of edu- 
cation, and to that which remained as a professed reformation 
of it, which prevailed under the ancient regime in France, 
that it is too rhetorical ; the force of artificial forms substi- 
tuted for rational principles, leads to prefer conceits and the 
whims of imagination to truth, which loses its power, and facts 
are discarded for hyperbole. The deportment of Mollien 
was sulky and suspicious, and the bias of his prejudices was 
visible in every conversation in which I heard him take any 
part. Had a stranger entered a town of France at midnight, 
say Troyes, Arras, or Orleans, places of unquestionable 
hospitality — had he knocked at the door of the mayor, or 
the sub-prefect, or a district judge, or even the curate, what 
would be his reception — where would his lodgings be ? not 
perhaps so delicious as in the pulpureia of the Chichadera of 
Santa Rosa ! 

Having so far noticed M. Mollien's book, written after I 
had a personal knowledge of him, I shall defer further notice 
of his book until I shall have ascertained whether there shall 
remain any room, after discussing the subjects originally 
proposed for notice in this publication. 



428 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 



Parching Paypa — peeled faces— sublime wildness of the country — features of 
the Andes not well understood — an appearance like an army — anecdote of a 
Spanish commander — forms in order of battle to receive three columns of 
Colombians — three columns of goats — diversity of fruit in the same patch — 
reach Enimacon — Virgin of Chinchinquira — has the faculty of multiplying her- 
self — procession described — hospitable mulatto — the Virgin becomes a patriot, 
and makes a donation to Bolivar — Bull fight — realization of Mr. Windham's 
ideas of a brave nation — ecclesiastical visit — example of a traveller's acquire- 
ments in the vernacular toneue in the West Indies. 



There are two places of the name of Paypa, or Pipa, one 
of which is called parching Paypa or Paypa the windy, and this 
latter we had to pass this day ; and we did pass it at the ex- 
pence of the scarf skin of our faces, and with lips so sore, as 
to have continued unhealed till we were some days at Bogo- 
ta. This passage is not literally a paramo, for fertility and 
vegetation flourish all the way, where man has thought fit to 
occupy and gather the product. But the road being carried 
along on the south side of the mountain range, and exposed 
to the reflected heat of a series of rude and wild rocks, 
which wind from the south and east, and sink into low 
ranges on the east ; the hot air appears to be drawn by the 
moisture and verdure on the length or south face of the moun- 
tain along which we were marching. Those who travel this 
journey should be provided here, and on other paramos, 
against scorched faces and split lips ; not that the wind or 
air appears hot, or to differ materially from the mountain 
breezes where no such effects are produced. In passing over 
Paypa, we were warned of this parching wind, and advised 
to screen our faces from its effects ; we did not pay due re- 
gard to the advice, and when we saw the natives of the coun- 
try, mounted on their mules, and travelling the same road, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 429 

with their faces so tied up, and their mouths so covered, 
that nothing but the eyes were perceptible, we, so much are 
men the creatures of habit, we treated them in our private 
discourse as unbecomingly effeminate. We purchased ex- 
perience by several days of very unpleasant pain, before 
our faces were entirely peeled^ and a new scarf skin supplied 
the place of that scorched off. The first remedy I found for 
the lips, was the pellicle which separates the shell from the 
meat of a boiled egg ; and this, though it protects the lip from 
reiterated scorching, does no more. I apprehend that oil 
of a pure quality, used with a sponge, would defend the 
face. The people of the country, however, secure them- 
selves by the practice they pursue. 

The country which spreads abroad its spacious, but diver- 
sified plains and waving grounds to the east and south, 
among the mountains beyond the scope of distinct vision, 
is so perfectly new, and unlike any preceding part of the 
journey, as to excite curiosity and surprize at every step. As 
the main route of travelling hitherto, lies along the lohf 
sides and often the lofty ridges of the Andes, the hasty reader 
would be apt to conclude, that where there was so much 
mountain, or as it would seem all mountain, there could be 
comparatively little room or soil for cultivation. No infer- 
ence could be more mistaken. The general notions derived 
from maps, the best of which are very defective, beyond 
what relates to latitude and longitude, and which, to render 
the mountain system comprehensible, should be upon a large 
scale, and depicted circumstantially ; maps generally repre- 
sent a long pervading ridge, rising near the south Capes of 
Terra del Fuego, passing along to the equator in a waving 
but northern line ; there dividing at Assuay, into three great 
limbs, and taking their separate directions, each still depicted 
as single limbs. These errors, very innocent under the 
defective state of topographic drawing, should be guard- 



430 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ed against. Those very limbs, like the great chain, con* 
tain, within their summits, vast plains and valleys of im- 
mease extent and diversity of direction, upon which the An- 
des, seen on either side from within, are reduced by position 
to the apparent elevation of ordinary hills. The same cha- 
racter belongs to all the limbs and ranges of the Cordillera, 
till they sink in the slopes and platforms of Choco and Da- 
rien, in the bluff cHfFs of Santa Marta, or in the gulph of 
Paria, before Trinidad. Nor is this characteristic of the 
American Andes alone ; the country of Mysore, in Hindus- 
tan, is such a platform as that of the plain of Bogota ; and the 
steeps of Hindu Coosh, which separate the northern India from 
Tartar}^ and Tibethean Asia, exhibit the very same character. 
The Cordillera which passes to the east from Assuay, ap- 
pears like a knot of several cords tied at Pamplona, from which 
the separate parts spread more or less wide, leaving the most 
fertile plains and valleys intermediate, closed in with walls, 
by which they seem shut out from all concourse. The moun- 
tains here seem very remote, and the hills that intervene 
scarce assume the mountain elevation. The sloping grounds, 
the vast pastures, which at a distance seem to move, or to be 
animated, by a sort of mirage produced by the motion of in- 
numerable flocks and herds. On approaching Paypa, the 
country presents still new and bolder lines, huge sloping 
banks of many thousand acres appear cut off from their for- 
mer continuous line of unison with the mountain ; these phe- 
nomena are not ravines wrought by descending torrents, 
which are nevertheless there, and form a part of the great 
work of eternal revolution ; those separations are transverse 
to the descending line. On approaching Paypa, the face of 
the country presents lines and forms still more bold and 
singular, huge sloping banks of many thousand acres of an- 
gular figure, break into steeps and overhang lower flats, 
which cut across transversely, hang over others in several suc- 
cessive but unequal ranges ; the lofty ridges, diminished by 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 431 

distance, leave no idea of the Andes, for which, as Humboldt 
truly observes, the traveller is searching around him, when 
in fact they are beneath his feet ; occasionally, but not fre- 
quent, a rill or a foaming torrent present themselves, just show 
their glittering or their frothy figures, unite and rush together 
into a partial oblivion, leaving the yellow or the gray bluffs, 
which their insidious currents have, by undermining, left as 
the monuments of their resistless power ; little hills which 
recal remembrances of regions more remote, with clumps of 
forest or of fruit- bearing trees, give emblems of the peach 
or the apple orchard ; lawns spread out where the cattle 
graze on luxuriant pastures, recalling still the habitual recol- 
lections of the dairy, but rendered still more picturesque 
where the dell recedes so low from the cooler range of moun- 
tain, and gives heat and sustenance to the varied palms which, 
as far as I have seen, are more numerous in their species 
than in continental Asia. Far beyond, and softened into 
paler shades, the plains, for distance makes all plain, the 
verdure takes a tint of blue from the transparent heavens, 
and diversifies its aspect by the shadows cast on lower fields, 
from hills unseen but by their glittering tips. You pass a 
mass of forest lowering and retreating to the right, or west, or 
north ; from beneath their shades rills of limpid water gush 
and traverse your path; here the Colombian soldier gives a 
lecture upon the diversity of human character; he does not 
court the stream to cool his wayworn feet ; he springs like a 
deer across it, for the water would make his feet effeminate ; 
it would call for the unready expense of shoes, which, were 
he rich, money could not purchase ; his philosophy is com- 
pounded, like all habits in all countries, into imitation, and 
the experience taught by stern necessity in a state of society 
not yet acquainted with the simpler arts. The rills unite 
like passing neighbours on a journey, and travel together 
chatting on their way to the lovver warmer valleys in search 
of luxury and a warmer temperature. There the hato, with 



432 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

its thousands of horses, breeding mares, mules, and asseSj 
spread over pastures fenced with saplings ; spaces set apart 
with clumps of forest shade for breeding ; hamlets appear in 
the remote spaces where accumulated mountain-streams dis- 
play a momentary glassy pond, and in the vast semicircle 
which the vision makes, presents to the observer pictures 
which are no where more rich, expansive, or sublime. 

On the right, near old Paypa, the mountains appear to 
crowd in closer, and give a new contrast in their dreary, bar- 
ren, chalky ravines, and their dusky clods of faded moun- 
tain grass, as if to add more diversity to the vast landscapes, 
in their southern and eastern front. Passing this region, 
while com. paring the height and aspect of those ridges on 
our right, with the more chalky mountains west of Barqui- 
simeto, our party was much and agreeably amused by the 
pleasantry of our sergeant. He had learned, by some means, 
that our domestic, Vinceiite, had been once captured by the 
Spaniards, and that his apprehensions of a recapture were 
among the few, perhaps the only disquietudes to which he 
was subjected. The sergeant possessed animal spirits inex- 
haustible, and as the mule pursues die " noiseless tenor of 
his way," in a gait so sedate and unhurried, there is ample 
opportunity, time, and much temptation to conversation, on 
a journey that is ninety-nine in an hundred parts solitary. 
Our negro servant, Pedro, was of St. Domingo, and not less 
apprehensive of the Spaniards. While we were viewing 
those chalk-riven mountains, the sergeant suddenly halted, 
and exclaimed, as if in affright, " Mira ! Mira ! los Go- 
das arrihaP'' — Look ! behold ! the Spaniards are above there ! 
and he pointed to a particular track ; began to describe the 
objects to which he pointed, and whose motion was very vi- 
sible, and in a direction that approached our path ; the ser- 
geant described them as three divisions of Spanish troops, and 
gravely showed that they were pursuing parallel paths, des- 
cending towards the route we had to cross; the objects moved 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 433 

mverj regular order, indeed, as the sergeant described ; and, 
in fact, the line of the direction from which they were ap- 
proaching was the mountain road of Toca. The panic of 
the servants was indescribable, and at the first exclamation 
and view I was myself staggered, and should have continued 
perhaps under the same impression as the domestics, had I 
not recollected that there could be no Spanish troops in that 
quarter. Poor Vincente approached me for counsel, to know 
what was to be done, because, he said, if the Spaniards 
took him again, he should be most undoubtedly put to death. 
The sergeant, apprehensive that I should spoil the affair, gave 
me a supplicating hint, and I told Vincente I should call him 
presently to see what was to be done, but that for the present 
we must move forward. Those formidable columns ap- 
proached by this time within perhaps two miles of us, and 
were then not very distant from the plain ; their order was 
m close Indian file, and covered a considerable length of 
line, on three parallel paths. Having gained a position some- 
what elevated, the sergeant requested us to observe them, 
and then told us an anecdote of a Spanish general, marching 
as we were, on the way towards Tunja, who had encountered 
a difficulty at the very same place ; but he had supposed the 
lines descending to be Colombiaiios, and, calculating as well as 
he could the numbers of the approaching body, drew up his 
troops on this spot, said the sergeant, and determined to give 
battle ; after manoeuvring an hour, continued the sergeant, 
and finding the Colombianos did not approach, he determined 
to advance upon them, and moved for that little village on 
the right, and when he arrived there he found they were in- 
deed Colombianos — but Colombiano goats ! Vincente and 
Pedro, who had listened with opened mouths and dumb 
anxiety, now looked at each other with different emotions. 
Poor Vincent appeared to hesitate between doubt and abash- 
ment, as if he had rather the Godas were there than that he 
should be so taken in ; the negro laughed outright, and ex- 

55 



434* VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

claimed, " that sergeant is a debel ov a fella.'''' In truth, there 
was no great reason for Vincente to be ashamed ; for, consi- 
dering that war existed, and that battles had been fought on 
the very ground we were then passing over, and the array of 
the goats moving on parallel paths on the steep sides of the 
Sierra, and the uniforms of troops in that country being ge- 
nerally white, with the regularity of their motion, the appear- 
ance was very deceptive. 

We now wound along through defiles, formed by the 
near approach of contiguous mountains, at the foot of 
one of which I saw a space enclosed with a loose stone- 
wall, in front of some pretty prospering cottages ; within the 
enclosure there \\2iS a very fine fig-tree in fruit, an elegant ap- 
ple-tree in blossom, a peach-tree, and a plant which I recog- 
nized as a species of palm, in India called tht paxv-paxv-tree. 
The perfume of the apple- blossom I thought uncommonly 
delicious, and that of the paw-paw seemed to be blended 
with it. The fences of saplings, on this day's journey, were 
numerous, and handsome, and the grounds appeared as 
clean and free from rubbish or decayed vegetables, as if 
there was much skill and pains employed in the husbandry. 

On Thursday, before dawn, we set out with an intention 
to make a long march before night. The climate was now 
lovely ; there were no declivities ; and population and abun- 
dance seemed to smile all round. At the end of about 
twelve miles we reached the village of Nimacon, or Enima- 
con. It is a small, though a very ancient village, and from 
the suburb to the plaza was but a few yards ; we found the 
whole population in motion, the paisanos with their best 
clean shirts, and the tails embroidered with the needle-work 
of their sweethearts, hanging, for grace, and ornament, and 
attraction, over their osnaburg or Santa Rosa manufactured 
cotton pantaloons; neat paragattas put on in honour of the vir- 
gin; the damsels in their betterinost attire ; their blue mantillas 
of woollen cloth paramount ; their hair sleekly and handsome- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 435 

ly dressed, and, where the measure of pecuniary opulence did 
not afford a comb, a handsome bodkin of ebony-hke wood 
or fancifully carved horn, gave to the apprehension the simi- 
litudes of taste and ornament in the valleys of Canaan, on 
the banks of the Ganges, in the cinnamon groves of Ceylon, 
or the sunny shores of Otaheite. The only varieties of fe- 
male apparel designating difference of condition, were a few 
silken black petticoats, and uniformly accompanied by stock- 
ings and silken slippers ; but they were very few ; the inanti' 
lla was more usually associated with wedding stockings and 
slippers, w^hich the owner always carried to the brook for 
washing ; a neater paragatta^ or sandal, sometimes interfer- 
ed between the foot of a young damsel and the soil ; the 
present of some swain, the tail of whose shirt she had em- 
broidered — rivalling the mosaic forms of the antique, and in 
a style equally original and not less fanciful. One only fe- 
male we saw, who might be called well dressed, of whom 
more presently.. It was the anniversary of some festival of 
the Virgin of Chinchinquira^ very celebrated for many hun- 
dred miles around. The original virgin holds her original 
place at the village, to which she gives her name, about 
fifty miles north-west of Bogota and thirty from Tunja, and 
has acquired almost as much celebrity from the credulity of 
the population, and the artifices of the Dominicans, who have 
the management of the imposition, as the shrine of the simi- 
larly celebrated Virgin of Loretto ; but here, at Nimacon, 
the original virgin was not present, but her representative. 
This delusion, equally lamentable for the infirmity of the de- 
luded, and the depravity of its managers, cannot be too of- 
ten exposed ; and although few travel through that country 
without hearing some part of its history, I shall give it in as 
i&w words as practicable. At a period not very remote, the 
date of which is uncertain, and unimportant, a poor woman, 
Maria Ramos^ residing in a hut on the site of the present 
sumptuous church of Chinchinquira^ reported herself, or 



436 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

some persons, more artful, reported in her name, that the 
Virgin Mary had in person presented her portrait painted on 
canvass to Maria Ramos. A storm disregardful of this precious 
portrait, overthrew her ranchoy and she fled to the house of 
the curate, to whom she is stated to have revealed the secret 
of the portrait, and appearance of the virgin, by whom it was 
presented, and that it was buried in the ruin of her rancho. 
The holy fathers of St. Dominic, apprised of this miracle, 
hastened to recover the sacred picture, and it has ever since 
remained the object of devotion for many hundred miles 
round ; but the virgin, like the Sarastvati of the Hindus, 
has a sort of omnipresence, and has multiplied herself to ma- 
ny distinct places ; as far as Carthagena and Antioquia, and 
elsewhere. The difficulty of travelling over immense spaces, 
in these countries, had rendered this expedient more accom- 
. modating to the pilgrims, and to the keepers of the sanctua- 
ry ; and, as one miracle is as good as another, the canvass 
painting at Chinchinquira not only renews itself, but ap- 
points representatives — another and the same — -who, like the 
virgin deputy we saw at Nimacon, assumes not the flat form 
of a canvass portrait, but appears in the fulness of the modern 
fashion, and the substantial forms of a fine-dressed milliner's 
Paris doll of two feet four inches. This accommodation of 
miraculous power, to the pious and to the priests, has been 
very fruitful ! ! ! 

We chanced to arrive in the very midst of the solemnity. 
The alcalde, considering the serious character of the Jimccion 
now going on, appeared too much engrossed to think of go- 
ing beyond the next rancho on the north side of the Plaza, 
^vhere he placed us, with just room enough to hang together; 
and went about the solemnity of the day. The thatched roof 
of our rancho, however, advanced four feet beyond the wall 
of our " parlour, kitchen, and all," forming a sort of corridor, 
whence, at only the expense of being stared at, we could see 
every thing. The alcalde, in a moment of recovery from his 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 437 

cares, returned to tell us that tht Junccion would render it out 
of his power to provide mules that day ; so we were fixed for 
the night at Nimacon, and, making a merit of necessity, set 
our folks to provide a good dinner, and purchase eggs for the 
next day's march. 

We had little more than brushed off the dust, and rubbed 
up our faces, when the procession was seen issuing from the 
ample gates of the church, which stood on the east face of 
the plaza in our full view, and passing along the north side 
where we had taken post in our corridor, perambulated by the 
west and south sides of the square, and re-entering the 
church, chaunting the while in no mean measure of solemn 
music. Several horsemen led to clear the way, and, as the 
square was without a fence, the multitude had ample room 
to see the show. Some persons in surplices preceded, others 
with censers threw forth the odours of frankincense and 
myrrh, then came the cross with other followers in costume, 
and then the curate in the damasked robes of high service ; 
a choir in surplices followed, all bearing wax tapers lighted, 
and giving the chaunt ; then came other surpliced youths and 
more censers and incense ; the chief object of all followed, a 
litter carried on four men's shoulders sustained a canopy, 
curtained with rose-coloured silk and ornaments of gold ; 
the curtains were festooned, and displayed the Virgin of 
Chinchinquira, or, as the Hindoos have it, one of her incar- 
nations. This was the shrine, of which the curtains, usually 
closed, were on this occasion festooned out of special grace 
to an admirino; multitude. The face of the virgin was of 
wax, and the figure in the best modern taste of Paris milli- 
nery ; and, making a little allowance for an unbending erect- 
ncss not so becoming in mere mortals, she had all the exter- 
nals of a pretty little ru!)y-lipped, rosy cheeked, black-eyed 
girl of three or four years old. 

Immediately after the virgin came two younger ecclesiastics 
in surplices and stoles, and, if they did not govern, at least par- 



438 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

took in the chaunt ; though I could perceive as they passed 
their eyes more engaged with us than with the ceremony. 
Prior to and during the procession, the angles of the square 
were occupied each by a table and a sort of white muslin 
screen, which I suspect were originally intended for altars ; 
they were overhung with pictures, trinkets, and baubles of 
every description, and some distiches in Spanish which I had 
no opportunity to peruse, as they disappeared at the close 
of the Ju7iccio?z. 

Before the procession commenced, a good natured mulatto , 
who had been making free with the good things of this world 
in honour of the virgin, and in whom his indulgence had 
diminished natural bashfulness, while it augmented his good 
nature, though it rather affected his articulation, solicited 
us to take possession of the balcony of his own adjacent two 
story house, and went very near the precincts of swearing at 
the alcalde for putting such folks as we were in such a 
shabby rancho; he told us that he was rich and free, and, 
por gracios a dios^ he had fought under Bolivar ; then he 
sung a stanza, of which Bolivar was the tlieme ; and then 
prayed us almost to provocation, to take possession of his 
house ; the virgin, he said, was a tried friend to Bolivar, and 
when the army was in great want, the virgin had presented 
Bolivar with S 150,000, which entitled her to the love of all 
Colombians. The fact as to a large sum of money being 
presented to Bolivar for the public use, was unquestionable ; 
but the virgin, on a former occasion, had been equally liberal 
to the Spaniards : the mulatto, however, either did not know 
this, or sunk it out of veneration to the virgin. The zeal 
and good will of this kind mulatto had, however, contrary 
to his intentions, annoyed us very much, and drew a crowd 
around that rendered it disagreeable ; had we arrived an hour 
earlier, or he had asked us before the procession begun, we 
should certainly have accepted his offer for our own comfort, 
as his house was the best built on the square,, the curate's 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 439 

only (and always) excepted ; and I was painfully obliged to 
request his absence, acknowledging ourselves obliged by his 
good will ; he retired readily, but rather in discontent at his 
disappointment in not having the pleasure of entertaining los 
estrangeros blancos (the white strangers) in his own house. 

The gift of the virgin to the patriot army is spoken of in 
all parts of the country. The good brotherhood of St. Do- 
minic, who are her confidential advisers, alone know hov/ 
the money was delivered, and are so modest as to say no- 
thing about it ; though they have derived from it, in addi- 
tion to their reputation as priests, a great celebrity as patriots, 
of which before too many were incredulous. However, 
those who were sceptical as to their politics, did not take 
into consideration other circumstances ; the Dominicans 
had once been exiled from Bogota, under the viceroyalty, 
and sent to Panama ; their wealth was at that time enormous, 
and if they had followed the fortunes of the royal govern- 
ment, the Virgin of Chinchinquira would not follow them 
to another country. Their inordinate wealth, contrary to 
very general experience among men in general, who are very 
apt to become indifferent to any principles when they be- 
come rich — it is their riches which makes these jolly fathers 
most zealous republicans. 

Thtfunccion had ceased but a short time, when a powerful 
and as handsome a brindled bull as could be seen, was dri- 
ven on to the square, which was indeed a well covered green 
field. He bore a strong bull hide collar, but no rope at- 
tached. He was driven by as substantially characteristic a 
mob, as could be picked up at a London bull- beat, in Smith- 
field, or Petty France — las gentes bcixos y de los malos pro- 
cederes — the celebrated Mr. Windham of England, had he 
been living, and present at this bull-bait, would say that 
"the nation must be heroic whose bulls were so fierce, and 
its mob so fearless." 



440 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The poor bull however had not quite fair play ; there 
were no dogs indeed to mvizzle or gore him, but, without 
a shield, he was obliged to fight men in ambush ; the mata- 
dorcs, which, from analogy, they may be called, some an- 
noyed his rear by a small sharp pointed goad ; while others 
in front, who had brought their cloaks or roanas, placed 
them on a stick, and, covering themselves, the bull plunged 
at the cloak, while the man evaded him by alertly jumping 
out of the line of the projectile. Another and another pro- 
ceeded, until the bull appeared to have discovered the de- 
ceit, and, in one or two instances, disregarding the cloak, 
plunged at the assailant behind it : had the violence of the 
plunge not carried the bull ten or twelve feet beyond the 
assailant, he must have floored his man, or done him up for 
ever. The man was indeed trampled upon, but, before 
the bull could recover the violence of his own plunge, the 
fallen man was on his legs, and the bull occupied by half 
a dozen other matadores. He had now become so fierce 
that, by means of lassos, he w^s brought to a post, a long 
rope hitched to the collar — and the other end affixed in the 
centre, he had the full range of the square. There was a 
post like a lamp-post, within fifteen feet of our caravanserai, 
and it was within range of the bull's tether; the same indi- 
vidual, who had before twice escaped, seemed to be marked 
out by the bull, who pursued him in the direction of where 
we stood ; the matadore had no resource but to clamber up 
the lamp- post, which he did with the agility of a monkey, 
to the great disappointment of the bull, who aimed repeated 
butts at the post, but without effect. The rope was soon 
after loosed and the show was over. 

Sometime afterwards the two young clergymen, whom 
we could distinguish also as cavaliers at the bull- fight, paid 
us a visit, apologised for the curate's being occupied on our 
arrival, and fatigued at that time, and tendering any services 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 441 

we stood in need of. A most lovely woman, a sister of one 
of the priests, accompanied them ; she was elegantly dressed, 
though in simplicity and neatness ; she would have been an 
expressive model for a Minerva — in figure, complexion, and 
easy manners. One of the priests, her brother, a very jolly 
fellow, let us know he had seen the world, for he had been 
all the way at Jamaica, and lived there several months ; en- 
quiring what progress he had made in English, he said he 
could make no hand of it ; for he had learned nothing but 
how to address the servants — seeing our negro servant, Pe- 
dro, standing by, he asked him in Spanish where he came 
from, and what his name was. Pedro answered directly ; the 
priest, thereupon, gave us the only part of an English edu- 
cation which he had acquired at Jamaica, by saying to Pe- 
dro — " Go to hell, you d d son of a b ." The visit 

soon, terminated. 

That night we heard, almost without intermission, the 
kind of hautboy which we had heard before at Timothes, 
but we slept well nevertheless. 

There are salt works in this neighbourhood, like those at 
Zepiquira ; but the festivity absorbed so much of the gene- 
ral attention, that no other subject was attended to. 



56 



442 



CHAPTER XXIX, 



Ascend the verdant Sierra — Fra, Garcia — Valley leading to Tiinja — the Daisy 
and the Linnet of Europe here — beautiful aspect of Tunja — lodged at the 
house of (JoL Banos — the National Nitre Manufactory — crowd of visiters — 
lovely Women — the blue Mantilla an established costume — described — former 
state of Tunja — present state — delicious climate— Churches numerous and 
loftier structure than common — curious position for a triple of the Virgin of 
Chinchinquira — ideas of the natural riches and actual poverty of Tunja — 
want of roads universal, cause of the lands being valueless — prejudices ex- 
posed — Senor Soto, a Senator from this district, his beneficence — an example 
of the success of the Lancasterian system — leave Tunja 31st January — cross 
the scene of the battle of Boyacca — Hato Viejo — plain leading to Choconta 
— surly Commandant — march on horseback. 

The alcalde was as good as his promise of mules in the 
morning, and we moved very early, having to pass el Monte 
arribat or up hill a great part of this day's march. The roads 
were, however, no way disagreeable, and we had the com- 
pany till within a few miles of Tunja, of our acquaintance, 
Fra. Garcia, whom we found to be a very intelligent and ami- 
able man, and circumstantially curious in his inquiries on 
every topic : the United States ; its extent ; population ; geo- 
graphical position ; climate ; customs, &c. The route, as 
the approach comes nearer to Tunja, lies on the side of a 
mountain, which has very gentle green slopes to the east, and 
forming the west side of a long but undulating valley ; the 
soil good ; the verdure delightful ; and the forests, to the 
west only, lofty and majestic ; the valley at the foot of the 
slope is narrow, and not so much occupied as is usual in 
such positions. The opposite or east side of the valley was 
skirted by a mountain more elevated than that on which we 
moved, and of a very sterile aspect ; the verdure was scanty, 
and the little vegetation that was perceptible, had a brown- 
ish hue, furrowed by rain into little diverging ravines, the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 4)43 

edges of which betrayed a gray or chalky hue. There were 
no forests nor plantations on that side, but, as is characteristic 
of the whole body of the Cordilleras, the apparently long 
continuous chain was frequently intersected. On the face of 
the mountain some villages were made conspicuous by the 
whited churches, and through some transverse sections of 
the range villages appeared, and churches, and most singu- 
lar a lively verdure, and grazing flocks and herds, as if the 
eastern sides had been composed of different materials, or in 
a different climate from the western exposure. 

On the verdant close-dipt sod over which we now travel- 
led, I recognized the daisy of Europe, and in a shady copse 
the gray linnet, which attracted me first by its thistk'note ; I 
recognized it by its plumage and song several times after- 
wards. Another bird of the European family, frequently 
amused us on our path, the water wagtail, alighting a few 
yards before us, and taking flight in advance and waiting for 
us again j its manners, as well as its form and plumage, ex- 
actly the same as the European bird. 

My long acquaintance with the late M. Torres, minister 
of Colombia, had made me familiar by description with many 
parts of Colombia, and particularly with Tunja. I was struck 
with the truth of his description the moment we descended 
to a long lawn covered with a velvet turf, across which a rill 
of pure water reluctantly crept ; the city soon arrests the eye, 
and seems to the approaching spectator, as if it was hung up 
in air; its spires and edifices numerous, and rising amphi- 
theatrically to the rear ; advancing nearer, a broad and well- 
formed road, bordered by the grass- clad carpet, continues for 
some length of way, and presents the openings of the streets 
rising from the plain, and lengthening from north to south. 
Presently the road diverges into three narrower paths, leading 
to three principal streets. We took the central path, and by 
a gradual ascent gained the pavement, pursuing our route to 
the plaza. Passing a lofty edifice, and seeing sentinels post- 



444 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ed, I asked for the head quarters ; a subaltern, who had just 
reached the wicket, enquired, I presume, sir, you are Colonel 
D. Answering in the affirmative, he said, quarters were pro- 
vided for you for two days past at Colonel Banos', and po- 
litel}'^ led the way, complimenting me and my daughter on 
our having made so long a journey in such good health and 
spirits. He led us to the house of Colonel Bafios, where 
we were received like old acquaintances by the old gentle- 
man. 

This gentleman superintends the manufactory of nitre at 
this place, which belongs to the government ; the want of 
chemical knowledge had rendered this establishment bur- 
densome to the public, as powder, ready made, could be 
procured from abroad at a lower price than the nitre pro- 
duced here. It was placed under the direction of this old 
veteran, conditioned to furnish nitre to the government at a 
given price. The process here, and at other similar estab- 
lishments, is the same as before modern chemistry had re- 
formed them, simple solution and evaporation ; but the use 
of lime had been introduced, as I understood, by his son, a 
promising youth of eighteen, with the best education of the 
country, but wanting chemical knowledge, to acquire which 
he had applied himself to French and English study. I ad- 
vised his going to the School of Mines at Paris for two 
years, as the best practical chemical school existing. 

We had arrived but a few minutes when the house was 
crowded with female visiters ; there were some beautiful, 
and more homely ; but an agreeable vivacity was striking 
among them all, more so, indeed, than at Valencia. Here I 
saw, for the first time, that costume of females which pre- 
dominates here and at Bogota, the blue fine cloth mantilla^ 
and the black silk petticoat. The mantilla is not a cloak, 
though it serves the purposes of a short cloak ; it has no . 
hood, though a hood is contrived to be made out of it by 
the wearer ; it is a square piece of fine woollen, and when 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 445 

put on the centre line of one edge is placed in front over 
the forehead, and drawn down under the chin, so as to 
cover or expose the ears or any part of the face at the will 
of the wearer, or to hide a part or all of the hair, or none, at 
discretion ; it covers the shoulders behind, and hangs no 
lower than to conceal the elbows, and is lapped in front, or 
with a skirt thrown over either shoulder, and a low crown, 
broad-brim, clean black hat, beaver or silk, (usually from 
Santa Rosa,) of which the crown is too narrow to press 
upon the head, and therefore swings on the summit of the 
mantilla in such a way as that a graceful, pretty, coquettish 
girl of Tunja plays so many pretty airs, in balancing her 
hat, and with so apparent an unconcern about it, that she 
bewitches you while you are in vain attempting to repro- 
bate the clownish costume. 

This costume diflFers from those of Peru and Chili, in 
being confined to the blue colour and woollen material, and 
the black, broad-brimmed hat ; in those countries a shawl or 
scarf of silk, of any colour, will perform the services of the 
mantilla ; and straw hats, such as men wear in the United 
States, are usually worn by females in the country places, 
with, however, a few ornamental ribbons round them. The 
body garments beneath the cloak are never visible, unless in 
the domicil ; besides the body linen, a short tunic is worn, 
very open in front, and, usually, with a scarf covering the 
neck and bosom. 

The first female I saw in Tunja was attired in the 7nan- 
tilla and black hat. I thought I never saw a prettier woman, 
the 7nantilla and the hat to the contrary. Tunja has a foot 
pavement, and she was " tripping on light fantastic toe'* 
down the pave as we ascended ; her figure was neat, as her 
handsome feet and bright stockings ; and her cheeks, and 
lips, and eyes could not be neater if she was Hebe. She 
vi'as one of the visiters of the evening, and, after being in- 
troduced, we were as much acquainted as if we had been 



446 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

familiar a year : she told me she took notice of my looking 
after her ; and, when I frankly acknowledged that it was be- 
cause she was so handsome, por esta razon vos mui bonita — 
mui hermosa — she appeared pleased and surprized at my 
not affecting to conceal the truth. 

Tunja had been the rival city of Bogota, during the vice- 
royalty, at different times, and had become a place of retire- 
ment for numerous families who had been exposed to the 
rapacity and other vices of viceroys, who had influence enough 
at Madrid to stifle all complaints against those deputy tyrants ; 
and Tunja, for its serene and delightful clime, had become, 
in consequence of these quarrels, a place of great wealth. 
My impressions were, in all that relates to natural circum- 
stances, realized ; the buildings of every kind are superior 
to those of any other city I had seen in Colombia. The ap- 
proach by the lawn from the east is so bright and light, that 
it seemed hung out to look at, like some toy in a fairy tale ; 
and perhaps the picture was more striking from a compari- 
son with the chalky hills along the valley through which we 
reached it. Besides the houses being two stories high, they 
are more elevated than at Caracas, Merida, or the greater 
part of Bogota ; and the streets are wider, besides having a 
walking path at the sides, which is not to be seen in any other 
of the cities. The elevation of the site may perhaps have 
made the impression that the churches are more elevated than 
elsewhere, but it is sufficient that they appear to uncommon 
advantage on the exterior. The interior I did not examine, 
as I found but one church open, and the decorations are ge- 
nerally in such bad taste, that they produce unpleasing rather 
than agreeable sensations : the churches had less of the ori- 
ental, and more of the heavy Italian architecture, with large 
mouldings and projections, though the dwellings maintained, 
in and out, the] Asiatic arrangements. 

The Church of St. James is the most favoured in local 
opinion ; that of Sta. Barbara is next, and Las Nieves is the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 447 

next ; the others I did not see, and could learn no particu- 
lars worthy of taking a note. The monasteries of St. Fran- 
cis and St. Dominic are much spoken of; Lieutenant Bache 
visited that of St. Francis, along with Fra. Garcia, and was 
pleased with the guardian, or superior, who was a man of 
much science. Monasteries generally, but particularly of 
females, are not objects of gratification to me ; they impress 
me, at every instant, with emotions of repulsion, as outrages 
upon the laws of nature, wholly apart from the vices they 
too often engender. Whether the convents of St. Dominic 
and St. Austin, or the nunneries of Sta. Clara and the Con- 
ception, — (rather an unlucky name for a nunnery) — or any 
others, continue in defiance of the restored rights of man, I 
did not learn. The Virgin of Chinchinquira, whose double 
we saw at Nimacon, has a triple at Tunja, which stands on 
the summit of a mount called Los Ahorcados^ that is, the 
hill of the hanged men, or gallows hill ; which name, how- 
ever, was derived from the aborigines, who did not hang 
men, but at this place offered human sacrifices — the jolly 
Dominicans do not hang or burn any one since they were 
forsaken by the inquisition — but they levy contributions in 
a manner that is incompatible with the duties of any persons 
calling themselves Christian priests. 

In conversation with Colonel Baiios, whose curiosity was 
as active as mine, and his intelligence superior, accurate, and 
extensive, I spoke in admiration of the climate and the po- 
sition of the town ; and asked him what the neighbourhood 
of Tunja produced ? His answer was — " within a circle of 
sixty miles, there is nothing which this earth produces, that 
we cannot produce — we have cacao, coffee, sugar, rice, to- 
bacco, salt, ananas, bananas, plantains, guavas, oranges, limes, 
cocoa palms, common and sweet potatoes, yams, apios, 
yuccas, aracatchas, peas, beans, caravanches, maize of a dozen 
kinds ; timber of more than one hundred species, adapted 
to every use ; we have gold washings, and mines of lead, 



448 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which yield as much silver as those of Mexico ; we have 
copper, iron, and nitre ; we have cattle of the finest breed, 
and sheep not inferior to Spanish, our horses are equal to 
any between the Andes." The enumeration was more 
comprehensive, but he concluded — " There is nothing to 
be derived from earth, climate, and art, which may not be 
produced in this circle." I enquired — and where are your 
markets ? he took me to the window, and pointed to three dis- 
tant villages on one segment of the circle, then to two others 
in an opposite direction. — " There, Senor Coronel, is our 
whole world ; beyond these five villages, all the rest of the 
world is to us as if this circle was an island in the centre of 
a boundless ocean ; so far our exchanges and our productions 
go." The manner of his expression betrayed concern, and 
shewed that he had thought much about it before. He pro- 
ceeded to tell me, " that this enigma was solved in the want 
of public or any roads ; it had been the policy of Spyin, not 
to make nor to mend roads ; and here we are placed in the 
midst of the bounties of heaven, and riches of nature, said 
he ; and though the Spaniards and the earthquake had spared 
us, this lovely city is going to decay ; we produce cotton, 
flax, hemp, and wool ; wheat, barley, and maize — but who 
will go to the expense, and the labour of production, when 
he cannot consume a tenth of what he can produce, nor ex- 
change the surplus for money or other productions. I have 
read in books written by thoughtless and prejudiced foreign- 
ers, who never saw our country, or never knew how to look 
at it, that we are an indolent and a lazy people ; have you 
seen, on the way, any thing to warrant such assertions? 
It is very true, nevertheless, that we do not think it neces- 
sary to labour under an ardent sun during the whole day ; 
nor to undergo such daily fatigue, that the remaining hours 
are barely sufficient to refresh us for another day of unvaried 
fatigue. Whether such rigour of labour be necessary any 
where or not, I do not enquire, but it certainly would be 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 449 

preposterous, where the same field aiFords two, and in other 
places three crops in the year, others five crops in two years ; 
and any one of those crops, greater than the whole annual 
crops of other countries. This fecundity, which would be an 
apology, if any were required, for not labouring without ceas- 
ing, does not, however, produce the supposed effect — look 
at the muscular forms of our peasantry, where are the peo- 
ple who can undergo such journeys, subsist upon such plain 
food ? who can tame the wild horse, or carry such heavy 
burdens?" The appeal was not in vain, every word corres- 
ponded with what observation had already established in my 
opinion. 

Speaking of the state of knowledge, and the causes of its 
retardment, it would be indelicate, having named him, to 
speak of his free and liberal opinions, under the actual cir- 
cumstances ; but he remarked, that the worthy Seiior 
SotOj 2l representative in Congress from Tunja, had done 
wonders in the way of general education, and had already 
established, in the province, (now the department of Boyacca,) 
twenty-nine schools for intuitive instruction, upon the Lan- 
casterian principle ; and that the intelligence thus diffused, 
was already beginning to be felt and appreciated ; he called 
a boy who was apparently idling in the patio, who had no 
shoes on, but slight trowsers, a shirt, and a cotton roana, and 
desired him to copy an account, and see if it was correct ; 
the boy, about fifteen, made no hesitation, folded his paper, 
tried his pen, and wrote it off in an elegant hand, counted 
the figures, and told him there were some fractions omitted ; 
this was one of the first fruits. I saw another accidental oc- 
currence of the same kind, as I was paying an account at 
a posada in Bogota, on the eve of my departure. A youth 
about the same age, with a blanket roana^ without hat or 
shoes, was looking for employment, and sat on a block in 
the pulpureia ; the pidpero could not make out his own ac- 
count ; this boy desired permission to look at it, and make 

57 



450 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

it out for him ; throwing the fore-skirt of his blanket over 
his shoulder, he set to work, and furnished a bill and a dupli- 
cate, giving one to the pulpero^ the other to the person whose 
bill he drew. This youth, in modesty of manners, and easy 
deportment, would have become better apparel, and a more 
respectable station. Other examples might be cited, but these 
aloije may serve, as they were wholly unlocked for, as some 
evidence of what the revolution has done, is doing, and 
will do. 

We had a large company in the evening, and the table 
gave evidence of that abundance and variety of which the 
worthy colonel had previously spoken. When about to re» 
tire, their importunities for our spending, at least, a week 
with them, were kind, indeed, most earnest ; then, at least to 
leave the Senorita and her brother behind, and they would 
make a party for Bogota, when Bolivar arrived, (he was 
then hourly, but mistakenly, expected)-— we avoided offence^ 
and felt grateful for their kindness. 

We moved early on the 31st January, and, after a march 
of about thirty-four miles, halted at Hato Vieja, or the old 
Grazing Ground, a section of the same plain as that of Bo- 
gota, but outside of the range, usually given to designate 
the plain. Besides the great plain, seen at one view, from 
north to south, the same level surface extends largely and 
over a greater space than the plain itself. The great plain I 
have heard usually estimated at forty miles from north to 
south, on a dead level, and from fifteen to twenty broad, in 
that length ; but the level surface embraces a much broader 
space, and extends much farther south and south-east. 
Humboldt, from whom it is not pleasant to differ in opinion, 
considers the course of the Tunja, through the chasm of 
Taquendama, as the onl}^ oudet of the plain, which he sup- 
poses to have been a lake ; no doubt every appearance sug- 
gests a resemblance of that description ; but it is a mistake 
to say there is no other outlet; the little streams at the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 451 

northern end of the plains, and at the continuance of the 
plains, which are of the same surface, have openings as am- 
ple on the north-west and north-east, and little rivulets take 
their course, in some places, to the north and the west, in- 
stead of following the Funza south. 

The level surface winds round the northern mountams 
that skirt the plain ; a very considerable plain runs north 
and south, parallel with the great plain, and leads towards 
Medina and the valleys of Albaracin. The long mountain, 
which forms the west side of the plain, rises abruptly, as it 
were, from the centre of a great ocean, and giving to the 
plain of Bogota the semblance of a comparatively small, long 
gulph ; that mountain is the Zepiquira range, which is in- 
sulated at both extremes ; and, on its west side, overlooks 
the vast range of country, between the Messa Grande, and 
the sources of the Rio Negro are within its circumference ; 
and the numerous streams which unite in the lake of Fune- 
que, which is the source of the long Sarabuta, which unites 
with the Magdalena. 

The plain around us at Hato Vieja, was far from display- 
ing any evidences of general industry, though there were 
numerous patches in good cultivation ; the ranchas were 
very numerous, and vast flocks of cattle covered the greater 
part of the plain ; esculent plants were abundant, as I suppose, 
for the Bogota, and perhaps the Tunja market ; and poultry 
must be very numerous, if the incessant crowing of cocks 
in ail kinds of pitches and keys, and all night, be a criterion : 
oxen, horses, goats, and mules, were perpetually marching 
and countermarching ; and the little rills were no less nume- 
rous, wrestling for a passage over the pebbled beds : in the 
midst of this negligent economy, the tropical plants and vines 
here and there formed canopies and shades for the rustic 
cottage ; and at some distance, on higher ground, the indus- 
trious potter was spinning his earthenware, his chicha and 



45:S YISIT TO (JOLOMBIA, 

guarapa pots of thirty gallons, which are here as celebrated 
in their rude way as the finest antique forms of Wedgewood. 
The first of February we were not ready till nine o'clock : 
we set out for Chocanta, midway between Tunja and Bogota ; 
it was also the frontier in primeval days, where the chiefs of 
aboriginal times wrestled for dominion. Here a great battle 
was fought, in which the zeipa or cazique Michu of Tunja, 
and the zeipa Chaquanmachicha of Bogota, both fell in the 
conflict. It being a military station, we rode up to the com- 
mandant's quarters in the plaza, and sent in a message that 
strangers were at the gate. The great man was at dinner, 
and the officer is placed in a military post without soldiers ; 
where the town appears as silent and destitute as the sands 
of Mesopotamia, what is a commanding officer to do, if he 
does not show he has power to somebody ? and as nobody 
comes but a passing stranger, why let them wait. And so we 
set to, cracked jokes upon the good order and silence of this 
garrison town, until it was time to send another message ; 
we succeeded no better ; and the sergeant was despatched to 
see if the civil was superior to the military; but the alcalde 
was reported three miles out of town. How delightfully M. 
Mollien would have worked upon this piece. At length I 
took some documents I had about me, and despatched Vin- 
cente with them, but Vincente was not admitted, and the 
sergeant, after brushing the dust from his cap, entered, sword 
in hand, and, as the great man had dined, we were invited to 
dismount and enter, I experienced on this occasion what 
ought to be guarded against in travelling any where, that it 
was very indiscreet to travel so many hours without eating 
or drinking, when it might be prevented by carrying some 
cold fowl, bread, or even good sweet plantains ; and further, 
that from want of such precautions, especially after being 
spoiled by the governors, and curates, and alcaldes, all the 
way from Meridato Pipa, the best good temper may become 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 453 

dissatisfied at being kept in the open air a good long hour. 
The subaltern who came to the door on this occasion, on 
seeing us, turned abruptly round, and disappeared, and ap- 
peared again : had there been any alternative, or a good open 
shed, in which we might sit down secure from sunshine, I 
think we should have galloped off before this time, and com- 
menced eating from our travelling establishment ; but the 
place, in its silence and the absence of population, resembled 
Balbec, or any other place not wholly in ruins. Though 
not perfectly satisfied, we marched in, and without disturb- 
ing the passivity of the great man, whose attachment to his 
seat, and the gathering of himself up on his couch, led me to 
suspect he must be of the pure Saracenic breed; the' uniformed 
hidalgo remained on his hind legs a la Turque^ when at 
least the appearance of a handsome young lady might have 
revoked his distaste to politeness and the laws of hospitality. 
His manners appeared to me (more, I suppose, because my 
stomach was craving) — his manners appeared rude, and per- 
haps the abruptness of his questions would have been tole- 
rable — in Morocco ; but, though well disposed to say nothing, 
he was answered, not without courtesy, for that is due to 
one's self, but in the fewest words possible. Among other 
questions, he asked how we came from North America. I 
answered, in a corvette now belonging to the government. 
The corvette brought his hitherto immoveable legs to the 
floor, and he entered into a descant on the expenses of naval 
equipments and expeditions, and, I suppose, suspecting I was 
one of the concerned going to Bogota for payment, he said, 
that a frigate would cost more than a whole army ; that the 
government was spending the money with which they ought 
to pay the soldiers, and, in fine, that naval extravagance would 
ruin the country. As this was not for me to discuss, I said 
only " humph !" and he asked if that was not a just idea. 
I simply replied, that I did not possess the data which would 
justify me in forming any opinion. At this moment the 



454 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

alcalde, who had been reported several leagues out of town, 
appeared, issuing from an inner apartment, and presented 
himself to the hidalgo, saying it was by mistake he was re- 
ported absent ! We solicited quarters, and mules for the next 
morning, made our lowest bow, and followed the alcalde 
across the great square, where good quarters indeed were 
given us. Reflecting on the hospitality we had experienced 
from the moment we entered Merida up to this place, I never 
could conjecture or account for the incivility of this man in 
ofSce ; and I could not but exult in the reflection that the 
country must be fortunate, indeed, which, in a long line of a 
thousand miles, has so few in pubhc stations who know not 
what best becomes a public officer, or is most reputable to 
his country and government ; yet this man, with all his des- 
garganillada y desemejanza, may have some apology at home 
as powerful as our long fasting : however, we ate and slept 
as if nothing had happened, and were laughing in the morning 
of Saturday over our chocolate at the past day's adventure, 
when a corps of smart horses were drawn up before our 
quarters instead of mules ; which, as their gait is more lively, 
and action more rapid, we found agreeable as a variety, 
though, in the end, much more fatiguing than the unvarying 
step and motion of the mule. " Talking of horses," we saw 
none shod but at Caracas, Valentia, and Bogota. 



455 



CHAPTER XXX. 

Halt on the plain of Bogota — Suesca, remarkable bluff— Zepiquira Caxita — Ri^ 
ver and handsome bridge of Sopo — Funza river — Hacienda of the Vice-Presi- 
dent — halt within three miles of Bogota — proceed to the city — kind reception 
by the Secretary — lodged in the Plaza San Francisco — generous hospitality- 
meet Col. Todd, American Minister — the approach to Bogota described — 
hedges of roses in perpetual bloom — appearances of the city on first entrance 
— its origin and some account of — its public buildings and institutions — the 
Plaza Heal a great market-place — particulars — and of the Calle Real — the ri- 
vers — customs — incident to absence of arts — and civilization under Spanish 
policy. 

Our march on the morning of the 2d February was agree- 
able ; the horses provided were good-tempered, manageable, 
and easy paced. We had yet to pass over a very spacious but 
irregular winding plain from Hato Vieja, giving only a fore- 
taste of the most extensive plain of Bogota, which we be- 
came now impatient to reach. But keen appetites, and the 
action of our horses, had rendered food and repose requisite, 
so we turned off the path into the plain, and halted at a posa- 
da to inquire for some wine, and for accommodation ; there 
was no wine, and we had recourse to an oriental sherbet of 
oranges sliced, with some cinnamon and sugar, infused in fine 
pure water, which made a beverage perfectly refreshing and 
grateful. This posada was on a skirt of the plain which leads 
to Medina, to the east and rear of Bogota ; our track led 
across one of the numerous and ample streams which pay tri- 
bute to the Funza, over which we passed upon a platform of 
trees stretched across the stream, crossed and covered with 
faggots, and with a surface of earth and gravel beaten firm. 
We wound to the north, north-west, west, and south-west, 
and finally south, on a path at the foot of a mountain of sin- 
gular appearance and materials. It was the northern extre- 
mity of the ridge of the mountain to the east of Bogota, and 



456 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which forms the east side of the plain, of which the ridge of 
Zepiquira, some fifteen to sixteen miles broad, forms the 
west side, and whose northern extremity terminates on the 
plain in the same manner, leaving the level of the plain open 
and exposed as far as the vision can distinguish. This 
mountain bluff, of which I have overlooked the name, round 
which we travelled, presented to the north an immense mass 
of detached and flat slabs of pudding-stone of very consider- 
able magnitude, lying in such a disordered heap, as if re- 
cently discharged out of some vehicle or sack, sustained one 
by the other on those angles or ends of the fragments which 
appeared beneath them, without any intervening earth or ver- 
dure, but here and there on some of the vast slabs a va- 
grant tuft of sycophantic moss, hanging loose and impending^ 
to appearance ready to slide and carry destruction on the path 
below ; but they had stood in that direction and state time 
immemorial, as if they had been an unfinished heap which 
the Titans had cast there in an effort to close in the plain, 
and cut off the skirt over which we had travelled. 

As soon as we had passed this rude promontory, the im- 
mense plain of Bogota opened before us, its southern extre- 
mity too distant for distinct perception. The shaggy side of 
the Zepiquira range, lying also north and south, formed the 
west side of the plain, and so continues full forty miles, till 
it breaks abruptly opposite, or due west of Bogota, leaving 
the verdant plains continued south and west exposed. 

The road that had been most commonly travelled, formerly 
led due west across the plain, and round the bluff of Zepi- 
quira, as the salt-mines there rendered it a rendezvous for 
mules, and thereby accommodated the traveller ; but it made 
the distance to be travelled longer by seven or eight leagues. 
A clergyman, whom we had fallen into conversation Avithat 
the posada, advised us to take the route on the east side of 
the valley by Suesca, and, as he was himself going the same 
Tvay, we adopted his counsel, and passed by the way of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 457 

Caxita. We had passed but a few miles on this route when 
we crossed the neat built bridge over the river Sopo, one of 
the numerous tributaries of the Funza, which was now visi- 
ble in many of its numerous and long meanders moving slug- 
gishly across and athwart the ample plain, the river being 
from sixty to a hundred feet wide, and evidently of depth 
sufficient to bear boats of considerable burden ; but not a 
boat, nor man, not even a canoe did I see on the Funza at 
any time during my stay. After ambling along on the slop- 
ing skirt of mountain, about thirty feet generally above the 
plain, a well-built dry stone wall attracted our notice, and 
formed the side of the road between us and the plain for se- 
veral miles ; a hacienda in the midst of a grove of lofty trees 
was distinct to the west of us, and when we had reached 
nearly the southern extremity of the stone wall, a spacious 
door, surmounted by a handsome pediment, attracted our 
attention ; on the space below the cornice was the following 
inscription, handsomely painted : 

HACIENDA DE LOS AMIGOS 
DE LA GENERAL SAN ANDEB, 1819. 

That is, — The country-seat of the friends of General St. An- 
der, 1819. — As the distance of the hacienda from the road 
was too great, we did not use the privilege of hospitality 
indicated by the inscription, as it would have retarded our 
arrival a day longer ; and, as our stock of provisions was 
now reduced to a single day's subsistence, we moved on 
to a village within three miles of the city ; and as there are 
no hotels, lodging-houses, or taverns in Bogota, strangers 
must either hire a house and furnish it, (if possible,) I deem- 
ed it advisable to leave my young fellow travellers at this 
place in the morning, and proceed to the city with the ser- 
geant, to provide the necessary accommodations. At eleven 
o'clock, on the third, the sergeant leading, I entered the 

58 



458 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

city ; and as the concerns I had charge of were with the gov- 
ernment, and as I had some friends in the administration, I pro- 
ceeded to the government house, where I was received by the 
secretary of state with the most unaffected kindness, and leaving 
me no time to talk of any thing else, led me across the Great 
Plaza, and placed me under the care of one of his friends. 
The secretary was much surprised to see me at Bogota, 
and I was not less pleased to find him, after all the vicissi- 
tudes of the revolution, compensated for the privations he 
had suffered, and during which I had known him at Phila- 
delphia, now happy in the freedom of his country, and full 
of well-merited honours and public love — without any alter- 
ation in the simplicity and softness of manners, than wlien 
he was in adversity, " Is it possible ? Colonel — why did 
you not apprise me of your coming hither before — that I 
might provide accommodations — come along"— and he 
hurried me along, talking all the way, till he met a friend, 
and said — " take care of my friend and his family, and oblige 
me." He took leave, and I proceeded along the Calle Real 
to the Plaza San Francisco, where I was placed at my ease 
at once, by the hospitable owner ; the sergeant was dispatch- 
ed for our party, and they were with us by three o'clock, 
just in time to partake of an elegant entertainment, at which 
we found ourselves, before we rose from table, surrounded 
by a number of old friends, and new acquaintances who 
gave us their assurances of kindness, which we found uni- 
formly realised during our stay, and of which the remem- 
brance is not likely to fade. 

The novelty of a young lady from North America, having 
accomplished a journey over the Eastern Cordilleras, a route 
esteemed difficult, laborious, and hazardous for soldiers ; 
together with the good wishes of those members of the go- 
vernment to whom I had been known personally, or by re- 
putation, during the revolution, had made our residence an 
interesting resort of the principal ladies and gentlemen of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 459 

Bogota ; a public entertainment, and the return of visits, 
led to the most flattering intercourse and intimacies, which 
made our time agreeable. While I attended to the affairs 
which carried me to the capital, my young companions had 
friends of their own age to occupy their time and gratify 
curiosity. 

The minister of the United States, Colonel Todd, was, 
however, among the first to visit his country folks, and we 
owed not a little of the gratifications we enjoyed in the capi- 
tal of Colombia, to his kindness ; as well as to that of his 
secretary, Mr. R. Adams. It would be gratifying to enu- 
merate the kind and hospitable attentions we experienced ; 
but, as it would be ungenerous to omit many, if any were 
particularised, and all would be too uninteresting and nume- 
rous to state, I prefer not naming any specially ; I can truly 
say, that I never experienced more kindness, nor found so- 
ciety where the females were more amiable and ingenuous, 
nor the men more kind and liberal. 

As the journey is now so far completed, it may be proper 
to fill up the views which the course along the plain pre- 
sented ; and to follow, in the same unstudied way, with some 
conversational account of the city, its institutions, and such 
other objects as belong to the Visit to Colombia. 

The approach to Bogota from the north, after entering 
the plain, is by no means on a direct line ; the plain appears 
indeed as flat as the ocean in a calm, but its sides are une- 
qual and often encroached upon by the mountains, that 
form its east and west bounds, which here and there project 
forward in irregular bluffs or long slopes, and again recede, 
leaving large recesses at the foot of the steeps. The road, 
usually lying above the plain from twenty to thirty feet, fol- 
lows the diverging line of the mountain base ; towards which 
the sluggish Funza occasionally winds its way, and again 
wheels round in an opposite direction. The road thus 
winding and elevated, is generally dry, but often rough and 



460 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

rocky. Several villages are planted along the route, of 
greater or less population ; sometimes a single rancho stands 
in a position convenient for the charge of one or other of 
those immense flocks of cattle which graze upon the plain, 
and whose apparently countlesss numbers would seem to 
defy appropriation. Yet these flocks are private propert}-, 
and no difiiculty is found in selecting them when necessary. 

It is not until the traveller is within about seven miles of 
the city, on this route, that he gains the first glimpse of it. 
A vast limb of the Sierra Albaracin, thrusts its bold bluff" 
some hundred yards into the plain, and screens the city from 
the view of the approaching visitor. Emerging from the 
cove formed by the north side of this bluff", and passing 
round its base, the dome of the Cathedral and the spires of 
several other churches, give a very imposing first glance of 
the capital, which appears placed on a slope more elevated, 
very distinctly marked, and relieved by the dark face of the 
lofty, bleak, and steep mountains, immediately at the feet of 
which it stands. The city stands, in fact, in front of one of 
those vast fissures or openings, which I have before remark- 
ed, as constantly characteristic of the Cordillera. The sides 
of this vast cleft are so steep as not to be accessible, and 
on the summit of each side is fantastically erected a church 
— one named the Virgin of Montserrat, the other the Virgin 
of Guadalupe, which present very picturesque objects to 
the stranger from the distance. 

About four miles from the city, some farms and gardens 
appropriated to the production of vegetables for the market 
are seen, with neat cottages carefully whitened, which ap- 
pear in brighter brilliancy, relieved by the richness of the sur- 
rounding verdure ; a long suburb of detached dwellings of 
various denominations, some small, and others spacious, 
mixed with lofty trees, dispersed and in clumps ; while the 
side of the Sierra, on the left, presents an alternation of naked 
rocks, ravines, cliffs, and clumps and groups of trees and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 461 

thicket ; through which crystal rills gush into rude channels 
by which art leads their streams for the uses of irrigation ; 
spacious and well-tilled gardens now occupy broader spaces ; 
patches of edible plants, and roots, shrubbery, hedges of flow- 
ering shrubs, and parasites on stages of trellis, and all the 
variety of tropical products which flourish in a climate that 
is neither cold nor hot, but uniformly averaging 68° of Fah- 
renheit, rarely ascending or descending five degrees. About 
three miles from the city, the road, which was a rugged 
maze on the scarp of the mountain base, is superseded by 
a new road constructed upon the fashion of our modern me- 
thods. It is straight, about forty feet broad, a convex surface 
of about twenty inches elevation in the centre above the sides 
— and flanked its whole length by a ditch of sloping sides 
and four feet broad ; beyond the ditches, on the banks, rise 
thick-set hedges of rose-trees, of two or three species, and 
whose perfume delights and warns the traveller long before 
he discovers whence they proceed. The mile remotest from 
the city was yef incomplete, but the two nearest miles were 
in a good style, and covered with the natural rubble of the 
ravines adjacent ; no country in the world has worse roads, 
none has better, or more ample and cosdess materials, and 
no country on earth stands more in need of them ; the great 
secret so obvious to any man of discernment, by which the 
lands of the desert may be made valuable, that of making 
roads and canals, has not yet become a measure of poli- 
cy, public economy, or finance, in Colombia ; but this will 
not appear so extraordinary, considering the perversity with 
which the policy of Spain had systematically opposed every 
species of internal improvement ; I recollect, when in the 
United States, with so many superior advantages as to social 
concerns, and it is little more than twenty years ago, when I 
have been spoken of as a hair- brained speculatist, for publishing 
and pointing out the importance of public roads and canals, 
and only one road, that of Lancaster, was then attempted upon 



46^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

permanent principles. If Colombia pursues the policy of im"- 
provement, with as much effect as she has established liberal 
institutions, there is no possibility of anticipating the prosper- 
ity of which that country is susceptible. This road, adjacent 
to Bogota, is a good specimen of that style which is con- 
structed with broken stone. As the country is unaffected 
by frost or snow, and stone and gravel every where to be 
had without purchase, the whole cost would be only that of 
the wages of skilful directors and labour ; and more faithful 
and hardy labourers are no where to be found. 

The entrance in this direction to Bogota is not so imposing 
or striking as from the causeway on the west side. My guide 
did not lead me the whole length of this handsome road, but 
shortened the distance by an inclination to the left, and after 
passing some narrow streets, entered upon an open but irre- 
gularly formed area, well paved, in which several streets cen- 
tre, and a fine stone bridge gave a better presage of a fine city. 
This bridge crosses the stream, which is called a river, Rio 
San Francisco, and was at this time a deep unsightly ravine, 
with a very shallow spreading stream ; it has its source in the 
crevice of the Sierra to the rear or eastward of.the city. This 
area and some of the streets running west, are the usual pro- 
menades of the citizens in this quarter ; and the streets being 
very clean, they make a favourable impression. The bridge 
here is of very excellent workmanship, and I remarked a 
structure of well- wrought stone-work on the area, which I^at 
first supposed to be a fountain, but it may have been a mo- 
nument of some description ; the workmanship of the mould- 
ings struck me on the passing glance as being executed in a 
good style. From this lower bridge looking along the ravine 
to the eastward, another bridge was indistinctly seen higher 
up, which I soon after found was a continuation of the Calle 
Real, or principal street, and north of which stands the Plaza 
San Francisco. 

The streets I now passed along were narrow like those of 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 463 

Caracas. The houses more generally of two stories high 
than at Caracas ; but not so lofty as at Caracas, Valencia, Me- 
rida, Cucuta, or Tunja ; but more spacious than at Truxillo, 
or Pamplona. I had felt on my first entrance some disap- 
pointment, from having given credit to the descriptions of 
some books, in which, perhaps, the exaggeration was rather 
in the idiomatic use of terms than in intention. A translation 
of a Persian or a Turkish narrative literally would be, to men 
accustomed to the use of language in expressing ideas ex- 
actly, a series of hyperboles ; the Spanish idiom partakes of 
this orientalism ; and M. MoUien's work proves that the 
French admits of this species of caricature. Some books that 
I have read make the streets of Caracas, as well as Bogota, 
forty feet wide : the widest street in either does not exceed 
twenty-five feet 'y and in Bogota the only street of that breadth 
is the Calle Real, all the rest are about twenty feet. Bogota, 
as well as Caracas, is, notwithstanding, sufficiently handsome 
without any aid of extravagance in drawing. 

Like M. Mollien, when I was led to the residence of the 
executive, I experienced some disappointment, because I 
had read in some book of the viceroy'' s palace ; without this 
previous impression, the house would have appeared most 
respectable : but there was more than the misnomer, there 
had been a dwelling called the palace of the viceroy, but it 
was on the south side of the square ; the house substituted 
for it stands on the west side. The original palace was de- 
stroyed during the revolution, as the city was exposed to 
assault, taken and retaken six or seven times. 

At the first conquest, the Spaniards found in all parts of 
America spacious and orderly cities and towns already esta- 
blished, and generally preferred their occupation to the tardy 
process of founding new cities or towns; the aboriginal people 
usually selected the positions that were best adapted for ac- 
commodation, health, and comfort, near pure water, and 
fertility. This was the case in Mexico and Cuzco, but the 



464* VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

chief place of these regions lay farther east of the banks of 
the Funza. 

The city of Bogota is of Spanish foundation, and derives 
its name from a native village, which still exists about ten 
miles to the west of the present capital. The first Spanish 
invaders were received in a friendly manner by the natives, 
and established themselves at this village, which from the 
neighbourhood of an extensive marsh, which still remains, 
but appears to have been then a lake, it was found unhealthy 
for European constitutions. Ximenes de Quesada, who is 
denominated the conqueror of this country, sought a position 
more salubrious, and selected a spacious sloping plain at the 
foot of the mountains of Albaracin, one of the lowest and the 
most eastern of the ridges of the Paramos of Chingasa. The 
choice made was judicious; a constant and ample stream of 
limpid water flows from the crevice that intersects the ridge 
to its base. This city was founded in 1538, and the great 
plaza, which is about a mile east from the steep side of the 
mountain, is in north latitude 4^ 36' 30", and west of Green- 
wich 78° 30', and 8702 or 8706 feet above the level of the 
ocean, for it has been so ascertained by actual measurements. 
It was said to have been laid out by the founder into twelve 
manzanas, or blocks, of about three hundred feet on every 
face, for dwelling houses; with streets crossing north and 
south, east and west, the broadest of which, the Calle Real, 
is no more than twenty-five feet broad, and the other streets 
generally twenty feet, some narrower. Those manzanas, 
however, were extended, as the population augmented, to 
twenty -five north and south, and thirteen east and west; 
and, as I was told, and which is very probable, that before 
the revolution, the manzanas extended to 295. It would be 
a useless labour to attempt any statistical enquiries, as they 
could not be ascertained with exactness at this period; a 
great part of the city was abandoned during the revolution, 
much more desolated by the Spaniards, and repeated pro- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 465 

scriptions, barbarous massacres, and executions, expelled 
numbers of the survivors ; and much still lies in ruins. The 
inhabitants were computed in 1823, as fluctuating between 
35 and 38000 ; and the activity that was already perceived in 
the suburbs countenances the returning growth of the popu- 
lation. To the rear of the northern end of the city, above the 
crevice formed in the ridge, presides on the crests of the steep 
summits a striking evidence of the extravagance and aspiring 
power of the church. On the steep verge of the northern 
peak of this crevice is a church called A*. Senora de Mont- 
serrat; and separated by the chasm on the opposite peak, ano- 
ther named N* Senora de Guadalupe. Strange caprice which 
established houses for purposes of religious worship on steeps 
so inaccessible to human feet, and to which the ascent must 
be at the same time circuitous, tedious, and dangerous. Their 
aspect from the plain and the city at their feet, is that of 
overhanging castles, such as in the days of feudality were 
selected by lordly chieftains to deter rather than to invite ap- 
proach or charitable communion. There was something of 
this lordly spirit in the selection of those sites ; they were 
beacons which told the surrounding vassals the power which 
predominated, and the discipline of penance in religious ser- 
vice had here a ground to put the pious to his travail, and 
teach obedience. These churches have no permanent resi- 
dents, but some poor sacristans, whose disciplinary habits 
have been formed to these bleak and chilly solitudes. On 
certain festivals religious celebrations take place at one or the 
other, to which some few whose zeal is ardent repair, to wash 
away their sins, work out, if not their spiritual salvation, at least 
impose upon the world their temporal beatification, to secure 
credit with the world they belong to. It is only in the ex- 
travagance of the positions selected for these " sacred dramas,'* 
and those " studied acts," that they differ from " performers" 
of other countries, where there is more and growing hypo- 
crisy than in Colombia, where it is really on the decline ; for, 

59 



466 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

by the best accounts, those ambitious rivals of Babylonian 
eminence, which were in the foretime sometimes crowded ^ 
now seldom collect half a score for a congregation. I notice 
these matters the more particularly, because there prevails 
much misapprehension in other countries concerning church 
affairs in Colombia, where, among those classes which have 
had the benefit of a good or a moderate education, there is 
not half so much superstition and much less hypocrisy, than 
in countries more reformed^ and who claim to be the most 
religious people in the world. 

There is an access to each of those tabernacles, by steep 
and winding ways, over paths precarious and toilsome — in 
visiting the country seat of the Liberator, at the foot of the 
steep, I had sufficient experience to satisfy what little curi- 
osity the novelty of those places had stirred within me ; and 
some of my acquaintances, who had taken the pains, satisfied 
me that the object was not sufficient to compensate the toil. 
From the crevice which cuts the mountain across from top 
to bottom, and leaving the gaping chasm with the black 
shelving sides standing awfully apart, beneath those beacons 
of a darker age, an ample and never-failing stream issues to 
the westward. Its current is at first a single volume, and, 
from the aspect of the rocks which occupy the space through 
which it formerly flowed single and powerful, it is evident, 
that it formed a torrent of great power. By whose sagacity 
and good sense this rich fountain was disarmed of its vio- 
lence, and diverted into separate and widely diffused cur- 
rents, I could not learn, as happens often to the benefactors 
of the human species ; by drawing off a part into a separate 
channel, and leading it along the side of the mountain south- 
ward, while the other half flowed in its accustomed chan- 
nel, it pays tribute to the reservoir, constructed in such a 
position as to supply the numerous public fountains, which 
ornament and supply with limpid water the whole city, and 
cleanse by never-ceasing rivulets the whole of the numerous 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 467 

Streets, which incline from the upper side of the city to the 
plain, and discharge their currents into the Funza. The 
two streams, which cross the city at about the centre of its 
two parts, are denominated rivers ; the Rio San Francisco is 
the northernmost, and occupies the ravine passed at the en- 
trance of the city from the east ; the southern stream is de- 
nominated Rio San Augustin, from the two principal monas- 
teries of that order near which it flows. There are some 
handsome stone bridges over this stream also ; there are five, 
in all, over the two streams, and of excellent structure. 
These rivers divide the city into three sections. The ra- 
vines, through which they pass, have not obtained any care 
or embellishment from taste or art ; and as the torrent, when 
its force was embodied in one volume, made terrible ravage 
on the friable clay soil through which it cut its bed, there 
possibly may be occasional floods, which would render em- 
bellishment and labour waste. 

Very near the issue of the waters from the gorge of the 
mountains on the north side of the stream, the President 
Bolivar lias a very tastily constructed pavilion, with sufficient 
accommodations for his suite, and a handsome rivulet, which 
has been drawn aside from the current, supplies the house with 
water for domestic uses ; entering the rear of the apartments 
at the north end, it furnishes basons and the reservoirs of a 
very commodious bathing- house. The pavilion has a saloon, 
an audience room, a parlour, a spacious dining-hall, and a 
retiring parlour ; a chapel occupies the north wing, with an 
altar ; and several suites of rooms are all under one roof. 
The garden which surrounds it is not large, but sufficient 
for the pleasures of a single retired family, and is supplied 
with all the curious and beautiful shrubs and plants to which 
the temperature is not adverse. The place, though over- 
looking the city, is solitary, but it is kept in good repair ; it 
would however have fewer visiters if it belonged to a less 
respected personage. The European usage of paying to see 
the show affords the garden- keeper a small sum. 



468 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Art and wisdom has not halted at the division and distri- 
bution of the great current. About half a mile lower down, 
but above the summit of the cathedral, there is constructed 
a very fine reservoir of excellent masonry, and covered in, 
which receives the pure water of the mountain flood. From 
this reservoir, the fountains which ornament and conduce to 
the salubriousness of the city are supplied. The fountains 
like those of Caracas are in no bad taste, and, what of all is 
best, they are a benefit to the population generally, and ac- 
commodate those who are the least able to supply them- 
selves, as well as those who are opulent. I am not aware 
that there is any reservoir on the south quarter, but I could 
perceive in my walks, that no street of the city having an 
eastern and western direction, is without its ample rill of 
clear water perpetually flowing over the well-paved channels 
prepared to convey it. I have read in some traveller's re- 
marks, that a travelling wit once observed of Bogota, that it 
would be a dirty place were it not for the waters that con- 
stantly wash its streets, and the gallinazos that devour the 
offal; this, like many other witticisms, is unjust as it is 
unreflecting. I do not know what Bogota might have been 
without this mountain stream, or without the* gallinazos ; 
but I have not seen a really dirty street in any city of Co- 
lombia that I have visited ; but the poor wit in this case 
proved more than he intended, because his sarcasm amounts 
to an acknowledgment of the actual cleanliness of Bogota : 
nevertheless, there are some customs among the poorer clas- 
ses that are neither cleanly nor delicate to the eyes of persons 
bred where customs are different, and, as these mark a defect 
of civilization, and a deficiency of the common arts of social 
life, so hv as they go, should not be overlooked ; no where 
are the manners of the well-bred people more amiable and de- 
corous. The poor Indians, only just rescued by the repub- 
lic from the same condition as the cattle in a hato, and re- 
stored to the social state of free human beings^ cannot be ex- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 46& 

pected to have acquired those ideas of delicacy which arc the 
consequence and the proofs of refinement. Our residence is 
in the Plaza San Francisco, which is an open grass plot, and 
traversed diagonally, going to and coming from the bridge of 
St. Francis at its south-west angle ; the poor Indian women 
in their blue cloaks and petticoats, if impelled by natural ne- 
cessity, without looking round, or any apparent conscious- 
ness of observing eyes, will not hesitate to squat on the grass 
for a moment, and, looking behind, pass along as innocent of 
offence against decorum, as the babe in its mother's lap. This 
undoubtedly is a matter which a more improved police will 
rectify in time, and I heard it was so intended ; but I have no 
doubt that some kinds of travellers, who, like the wit upon 
the gallinazos, would set it down as the evidence of national 
barbarism, would not hesitate to step up to a wall or into a cor- 
ner, if called upon in the open street by a similar necessity, and 
perform a similar act, without thinking it indecorous. But 
I must say this of Bogota, and indeed Colombia generally, 
that I never saw a man in Colombia imitate this practice of 
well-bred men, in our professedly more polished societies^ 
where every corner, especially near our public courts, is 
perpetually perfumed^ I was going to say, with atnmottia or 
spirits of hartshorn. 

The other practice I refer to is not a mere moral affair ; it 
is the singular devices to which the absence of the useful 
arts reduce men, and by which the operations of the scaven- 
ger are conducted at Bogota ; it is a proof, nevertheless, that 
there is a strong disposition to preserve the streets from im- 
purity, though the means are almost ridiculous. From the 
balcony of my residence, beneath which a constant current 
washed the channeled pavement, at some distance above, I 
perceived six or seven men, with short brooms, without 
handles, squatting on their hams and clearing the gutter from 
an unusual quantity of vegetable substance that had accumu- 
lated at different points, and by arresting the currreut formed 



470 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

pools, that if suffered to remain must become offensive to 
the senses ; they brushed this filth upon the higher pave- 
ment, beginning at the lower extremity, and, when the 
channel became clear and the pavement uncovered, they 
proceeded in the process by which the filth was to be 
removed : — there was no mule at hand ; there was no cart, 
or wheel- barrow — for wheel carriages make no part of the 
public accommodation or economy in any part of the coun- 
try or town ; there was not a hand-barrow, not a trough, 
or box, or coffer ; there was not even a shovel, nor a ca- 
labash, nor a tortoise shell in the hands of the scavenger ; 
what was to be done? The filth was not such as the 
gallinazo would or could carry away — yet the filth was ab- 
solutely to be removed, and it was thus accomplished. The 
cow- hide, that serves for ten thousand uses — that serves for 
window blinds and doors, for the seats and backs of settees 
and chairs ; which is better than a hempen sacking-bottom 
for a bedstead ; — with it the rafters of the rancho are made 
fast to the transverse beams ; the doors of separated rooms, 
and even the front doors, are frames covered with cow-hide ; 
it forms the lasso by which the wild horse and bull are brought 
under subjection ; and the harness of the numberless mules 
which carry all the world of commerce ; — the enumeration of 
the uses would be endless : — the scavenger carries a bag sat- 
chel shaped, made of a single cow-hide doubled on itself, and 
sewed at the sides ; the open end is laid upon the pavement, 
and the filth swept into it with the short broom ; a strap of 
cow-hide made fast at the sides, serves to purse up the aper- 
ture, and to suspend the bag over the shoulder, and thus it 
is the filth is removed. This fact argues, what is necessarily 
true, the wretched state in which the policy of Spain placed 
the countries formerly subjected to it. Were such an usage 
to prevail twenty years hence, it would be a reproach to the 
republic. But I have been describing customs, and the su- 
burbs, before I have said much that is necessary about the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 471 

city itself. I made no notes of the names of the streets, be- 
cause in every other city they have been changed ; Bogota 
itself has been disarrayed of its sanctification by Congress, 
formerly called Santa Fe de Bogota, or Bogota of the holy 
faith. It is the custom of republics, I believe, to become 
laconic or economical of words, and as names are mere terms 
of discrimination, intended to convey an idea of identity of 
place, the Colombians have thought, that, as there were more 
than fifty places of the name of Santa Fe, which, though in- 
tended as an adjunct, was often confounded with the true 
name, they have lopped off the adjunct, and he who hears 
Bogota is sure that it is not Santa Fe de Antioquia, nor any 
ether of the Santa Fes. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 



The Plaza Mayor— commanding position of the Cathedral — the Government- 
house — the market day— multiplicity of products— foreign manufactures— 
Calle Real — bookselling— shops— jewellers— shoemakers — tailors— tin-plate 
workers— milliners— blacksmiths. 



Of the four plazas, or open public squares of Bogota, 
the Plaza Mayor requires the most notice. They have 
fountains, which constantly flow with pure water, of exceU 
lent architecture, such as I noticed at Caracas ; and, in com- 
mon with all the streets running from east to west, command 
a complete view of the splendid and expansive landscape in 
the whole range of the circle from south by west to north 
and north-east, the mountain forming the back ground. The 
Great Plaza is distinguished in various modes for its sump- 



47^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

tuous cathedral, with its lofty elliptical dome, rising in 
graceful proportions above the eastern end of the church, 
lighting the great altar beneath and the choir : its two beau- 
tiful cupolas are elevated above the facade, on the west- 
ern end, and the facade itself, presenting an object, which, 
though it may not be in conformity with the exact propor- 
tions of the European schools of architecture, the tout en- 
semhle affords to the eye which is not too fastidious, cold, 
and critical, a high gratification. The dome seen from the 
west, with its two cupolas, at once suggests the resemblance 
to the bold and commanding preeminence of St. Peter's at 
Rome, and St. Paul's at London ; and, although neither so 
ample nor so elevated, it derives, from the high position on 
which it stands, an aspect not less imposing and interesting ; 
and, like those great temples, deriving an additional advan- 
tage from contrast with the surrounding steeples, and domes, 
and cupolas, which, though numerous and high, appear di- 
minished to inferiority from its commanding elevation. In 
the next chapter, I shall offer some further particulars in con- 
sex ion with a sketch of the ecclesiastical affairs. 

The cathedral stands on the east face of the plaza, and, 
with another religious structure, occupies about three-fifths 
of the whole front ; the residue of that face of the square, 
on the south end, is composed of dwellings with covered 
verandahs or galleries, and a corridor on the street. 

Directly opposite the cathedral, and on the north end of 
the west face of the plaza, stands the palace, so called, of the 
executive : M. Mollien, of whom some notice was taken 
at Serinza and Santa Rosa, sneers at the apparent contradic- 
tion of a palace and a republican government, betraying his 
disregard of the original derivation of this title to the present 
structure, and its history ; it being only occupied for the pub- 
lic accommodation in consequence of the destruction by the 
Spaniards of that building, which was, at the commence- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 473 

ment of the revolution, the palace of the viceroy, and stood 
on the south side of the plaza, where a temporary barrack 
for infantry has been since erected : M. MoUien also might 
have learned, in the course of the studies which he under- 
went to qualify him for his secret mission, that in the Cas- 
tilian language, which is prone to orientalism, a hut of four 
bamboos, or of four pita walls with one apartment only, 
may, without violence to the idiom, be denominated a pa- 
lace — which, after all, signifies no more than the word place. 
This building, though it possesses no external decoration, 
nor pretension to architectural order, is a spacious and com- 
modious establishment. It is two stories high, and affords, 
besides numerous apartments for the vice-president and his 
suite, ample accommodation for all the great departments of 
the executive administration, without crowding or interfering 
one with the other. 

The entrance — and, as is universal, the only entrance — is 
on the face of the Great Plaza, which opens by a pair of 
ample folding gates to a spacious hall, paved, and through 
which a broad entrance leads to the patios in the continuation 
of the buildings west. On the left of the entrance there is 
a handsome room appropriated for the use of the officer of 
the day, whose duty places him there. In the continuation 
of the entrance, beyond that room, a broad staircase of two 
flights leads to the upper apartments ; and further on, very 
good rooms are occupied by the detachment of the dragoons 
of the guards, who do duty on foot ; two of whom, with 
their sabres, perform the service of centinels, and, with a 
civility that is not common to centinels and guards in other 
countries, render to strangers the service of guides, and, as I 
constantly found them, always ready to afford directions to 
those who visit and inquire for the different public offices. 
This hall exhibits, besides the obliging dragoons on duty, 
the arms of the guard, their carabines in fine order, suspend- 
ed on racks, and the sabres and accoutrements neat and me= 

60 



474 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

thodically disposed. On the right of the entrance a stone 
staircase, of a few steps, leads to a passage northward, and 
opens upon a patio well paved, and an ample corridor, cover- 
with the strong matting fabricated by the Indians, which leads 
to the apartments appropriated in the north-east angle, to the 
department of foreign affairs. The offices of the secretary of 
the interior, the treasury, the war, and the navy departments, 
are on the upper floor, as well as the audience hall, council 
chamber, and a vast number of apartments in the occupation 
of the executive, both for public uses and his domestic ac- 
commodations. 

But it is as the centre of all popular festivities, and, above 
all, as the centre of traffic, as a great market, that the 
plaza mayor presents the most interesting position in Bogota. 
The ordinary market day is Friday, and, though it has this 
stated day for the immense concourse from the surrounding 
country, this place, for three or four hours every morning of 
the week, exhibits an abundant market for articles of sub- 
sistence, in the greatest variety, and at the most moderate 
prices. 

This spacious square is paved in the usual excellent style 
throughout, and the method of paving in compartments, by 
lines of stones on the edge, and the compartment filled with 
pavement of round stones, though it was not intended for 
the purpose, becomes of some use in the apportionment 
of space to the dealers in various commodities ; there are 
neither tables, chairs, stools, counters, or chests visible in 
this square ; all commodities are displayed on the naked 
pavement, br, where the articles require it, on coarse cloths 
spread upon the space regulated. Here are seen the 
manufactured products of all parts of the globe, Japan and 
China, India, Persia, France, England, Germany, Italy, 
and Holland ; and, though last, not least, the United States, 
or their favourite America del Norte. On different platforms, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 4*75 

apportioned out by proper officers, or clerks of the market, 
or deputies of the alcaldes, are seen piles of every kind of 
cotton, woollen, silk, and linen manufactures ; calicoes of 
India and England, the silks of Asia, Italy, and France ; 
the coarse linen fabrics of Russia, Saxony, Silesia, Swabia, 
and Holland ; the finer linens of England, Ireland, France, 
and Holland ; the broad coarse stripes and checks of Ger- 
many, and their English successful imitations. I recognized, 
with some surprise and pleasure, in more than one of these 
collections, the familiar Wilmington cotton stripe, and 
alongside of it an English imitation, which I found, to my 
no less surprise, the chapman knew ; and he showed me a 
remnant of an imitation chambray, of a thread about the 
texture of nankeen, which he said was much sought on ac- 
count of its durability and suitableness. Lanes, if I may so 
call them, were kept open between the cloths of each chap- 
man, so that the purchasers travelled as if upon the Hues of 
a chequerboard. There stood an ample series of piles of 
coarse, and next to it of fine woollen broad-cloths — of York- 
shire and of Rouen, and some too of the Philadelphia and 
Baltimore looms. Blankets and stripes for romeros ; hats, 
round and military, of wool, fur, and beaver, as well as 
straw, chip, and cuquisias, or the agave fibre ; and for both 
sexes. 

On other compartments of the plaza, fruit and vegetable 
productions, of every description, were placed in piles on 
the pavement or in capacious or small baskets — potatoes, 
beets, turnips, carrots, apios, yuccas, cheremoyas, pine apples, 
melons, paw-paws, soursops, alligator pears, medlars, guavas, 
cauliflowers, artichokes, aracatchas, &c. ; baskets and sacks 
of crimson, yellow, mottled, and snow-white maize ; rice in 
sacks and baskets ; wheat, beans, barley, pease, vetches, &c. ; 
ginger, cellery, cinnamon, capsicums of numerous kinds and 
sizes ; cabbages, lettuce, and bouquettes of p'aiks, roses, 
lilies, and many flowers peculiar to the country. 



476 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

On other spaces, turkeys, pheasants, ducks of different 
kinds, partridges, quails, guinea fowls, doves, various kinds 
of pigeon, and numerous birds of variegated plumage, and 
singing birds in wicker cages ; among the birds the mocking 
bird, heard in all parts of the wooded country and plains, is 
also brought to market for domestic curiosity, as well as 
parrots and paroquets of various tints and tongues, and 
monkeys of different species. 

In other spaces are seen the barks of Loxa, Neyva, and 
Quito ; the balsams, dye-woods, turmeric, indigo, cochineal, 
and a paste for dyeing, made of the opuntia or prickly pear, 
cassia or native cinnamon, pimento, and other aromatics. 

Sugar, cacao, coffee, cotton, in small and in large parcels ; 
and chocolate prepared in round balls, sold by the basket, or 
in any larger or smaller quantity. 

Coarse clothing, hats, saddlery, coarse cutlery, and simi- 
lar articles, are to be found constantly for sale on the market 
day at the stated hours ; and mules, asses, and horses, as 
Vi^ell as catde of different kinds, are here bargained for, from 
a single animal to a thousand. 

The only manual arts which I saw in practice at Bogota, 
were principally that of the tailor, next the shoemaker ; I 
saw one blacksmith's shop, it was that of an Englishman ; 
there are several tinplate workers, but their skill is confined 
to pint pots, tin cups, graters, and lanterns, and now and then 
a porringer, ladle, or cullender ; so that the want of roads is 
not to be deplored by the retailers of Yankee notions of tin 
ware, the demand being limited to articles so few. 

These and every merchantable thing are to be found in 
this market, but every day these are to be found in the shops 
v.vhich occupy the north face of the plaza, where also wines, 
oils, iljguors, and foreign products are always to be found. 
But it is iV-. the Calle Real that the richest and finest commo- 
dities are ex posed for sale in spacious shops, which occupy 
the ground-fl ^or of all the houses on both sides of that busy 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 477 

Street. Here the finest jewellery, cutlery, millinery, and 
clothing for both sexes, are collected, and from thence dis- 
persed over all the countries, west, south, and east, for some 
hundreds of miles, and beyond Quito. Native crystals, the 
topaz of various hues from Brazil, the emeralds of the coun- 
try in deeper or paler tints, wrought and rude ; the diamonds, 
and rubies, and amethysts of Asia, glitter alongside the ar- 
tificial gems of Paris ; and the fine wrought gold filagree of 
the native workmen which rivals that of the eastern Archipe- 
lago. This street contains the only bookseller's shop I had 
an opportunity of seeing in Colombia ; the books were prin- 
cipally French, a few English, many recent productions of the 
Spanish press, which were issued in great profusion during 
the existence of even that partial and kind of expedient for 
government under the Cortes, which, in recognizing the most 
mean and perfidious of men as monarch, lost the Cortes the 
confidence and the respect of all virtuous and generous minds. 
In noticing the bookseller, whose business did not seem 
to be either brisk or profitable, I am led to speak of the li- 
brary. In noticing the former monastery of the Jesuits, now 
a seminary of education upon the old system, I observed it 
stood on the south-east angle of the manzana, cut by the in- 
tersection of the streets which are continuous of the east and 
south faces of the great plaza, the Calle Real being the north- 
ern continuation of the east face, and the Jesuit's college that 
which continues on the same line south. The old monas- 
tery of San Bartholome stands further south on the north 
side of this street. The transactions of which I had charge 
carried me for some weeks to this library, where the board of 
liquidation held its sittings, and whose deliberate mode of 
business enabled me to travel through the heaps of books 
which lay on the floor, and a vast number which occupied 
the ample shelves. I felt some dissatisfaction at the manner 
in which these books were treated, and the negligence and 
disorder of the mode in which their arrangement was not car- 



478 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ried on, and the more as I found among this rich collection 
many valuable, I may say invaluable works ; and although 
there is a great mass of sciiolastic, and monastic, and dogmatic 
rubbish, it is there that the materials could be found to fur- 
nish an history of the countries that had been possessed by 
Spain. This library is founded on the collection left to his 
country by the celebrated Mutis, a native of Bogota, to 
which has been added by the public providence all the libra- 
ries that belonged to confiscated estates, ecclesiastical and 
private. 

The observatory, which was erected under the auspices of 
Mutis and others, remained ; its instruments and apparatus 
were there, but no professor ; at my departure I understood 
some men of science had arrived, and this class of institu- 
tions was about to be restored. 

The spectacle of this market in the plaza mayor, not only 
on Friday but every day, is very striking to the eye of a stran- 
ger. Travellers too generally look to other objects, physical 
and metaphysical ; it was viewed by me as an example of the 
natural state of the country ; its riches for external commerce 
and its abundance ; the manners of the people under the 
new institutions ; their good humour ; their cordial deport- 
ment towards each other ; their aptitude for labour in the 
enormous burdens carried by men and women into and out 
of the plaza ; the promptness of their bargains ; the avidity 
displayed for articles of use and ornament ; the very remark- 
able activity and industry of the aborigines who visited the 
market with a diversity of commodities, the products of their 
own industry, all of which presented to me a scene of man- 
ners and opulence in the industrious classes, much beyond 
my warmest anticipations. I could not but deplore the utter 
absence of roads adapted to wheel- carriages, and the trans- 
port of the products of the soil, the want of which alone pre- 
vents the cultivation of immense tracts in the finest climates 
and the richest soil in the universe ; and I regret to say that 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 479 

their importance, though much spoken of, is not duly ap- 
preciated, either as a source of national opulence, augmented 
population, or, what they very much require, sources of 
effective permanent revenue. 

Having spoken of this central mart of the capital, before 
I leave it, some further notice of the cathedral may be given 
in this place. At a distance, especially on the road return- 
ing from the south-west, the city and its loft}^ elliptic dome 
present some resemblance of the city of Florence in Etruria ; 
I have before noticed its resemblance, connected with its 
two cupolas, seen from the west, to St. Peter's and St. Paul's. 
In one of those cupolas there is a very fine clock, and kept 
in the best order, which, besides striking the hours on a bell 
of a fine deep tone, strikes the quarter hours on a tenor. 
Bells of a good tone are rare, though there is no church with- 
out bells of some kind, but they are miserable utensils, af- 
fording no more musical sounds than the brass candlesticks 
when the country housewives are collecting a swarm of bees. 

The cathedral- of Bogota has been much admired for its 
fine facade, and not without good reason, though M. Mollien 
reprobates it, while he applauds the interior, which belongs 
to no order of architecture whatever. Captain Cochrane, 
with a different temper, lavishes encomiums on both with a 
hasty indiscretion : the truth lies between. The first im- 
pression made by this structure is that of pleasure, for the 
facade at twice the distance of its elevation is in harmony 
with its diameter ; and it is only on a closer approach, that 
the entablature appears too much depressed for the length 
of the shaft of the pilasters which sustain the cornice. The 
base moulding of the shaft is not the cincture bead and to- 
rus of the Doric, but such as we sometimes see on the Co- 
rinthian, Ionic, and even the Tuscan ; a double moulding, 
as the workman would describe it, but in more technical 
phrase the upper member of the base, or astrigal, or small 
torus, with a scotia below, and beneath, placed upon the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

plinth, the larger torus. The excellence and boldness of the 
chisseled work, as it appeared to me, though it is disco- 
loured by the atmosphere, was a species of freestone much 
resembling that of which the capitol at Washington and the 
houses of Bath in England are generally constructed. The 
pedestal has no skirting, and seemed rather low for the shaft, 
which perhaps may have been the effect of the platform raised 
in front. 

This structure has another peculiarity, that of being erect- 
ed by a native and self educated artist, who had never pass- 
ed beyond the precincts of his native province : as the effect 
is striking, and it is the fastidiousness of criticism that would 
discover faults, and such have been said to be found in some 
of the most celebrated structures of antiquity, it is entitled 
to admiration. The interior, to which access is obtained by 
a fine pair of lofty gates at the west end, has been described 
as built in the Corinthian order ; it had been better not to 
have said so. The church is separated into two aisles and 
the nave, the sides half the width of the centre. On entering, 
the altar and the church altogether is concealed by the west 
end of an elevated choir, which occupies above the floor 
two fifths of the nave. It is not so gloomy as the choir at 
Caracas, but it has all the inconvenience and cumbrous ap- 
pearance ; and excludes the auditory from any participation 
in the psalmody. The choir passed on either side, displays 
some massy white pillars, upon the summit of which are 
capitals rudely imitating the acanthus, but all over-gilt — 
the shafts are too stunted, and the gilding outre. There is 
nothing of the carver's skill, nothing of that " virginial delica- 
cy" which Scamozzi considers essential — no lightness, nor 
that sudden unpressed rest of the acanthus, beneath its tile or 
abacus, without which the plain Doric or the rustic pillar 
would be more suitable. The church is every where well 
lighted from above, and, after advancing as far as the east end 
of the choir, the great altar appears in a recess equal to the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 481 

breadth of the nave, and elevated, exclusive of the steps of 
the altar at the extreme, one or two steps above the floor of 
the church. There are two side altars beside the great altar 
appropriately placed in the east ; and some paintings of sa- 
cred subjects very well disposed around these altars. 

In the two aisles, on the north and south sides, there are 
several, perhaps twelve or fourteen, lesser altars, or little 
chapels ; around which there are lesser paintings, and I re- 
marked that those of every separate altar were in a style of 
colouring and shade peculiar and different from each other j 
some were very fine — but many were sad daubs. 

Passing along to the east by the south aisle, a very hand- 
some and ample door stood open, and revealed at a glimpse 
an interior chapel of a light grey marble, of beautiful 
and admirably executed architecture, in which the very 
athletic columns displayed the Ionic capital. The shafts 
were unusually swelled, and less elevated for their diameter 
than the Ionic proportions ; so that I should have been apt 
to say, that the shaft was really Doric ; nor has the archi- 
tect introduced any of the usual ornaments of the Ionic on 
the frieze. These remarks are made, and, though not im- 
portant, may remain in preference to a more studied or con- 
cise general description. The impression made by the view 
was delightful, there was a harmony in the breadth and ele- 
vation which seemed to reduce the space. It occurred to me 
that the architect, in this structure, had accommodated the 
elevation and diameter of the column, to the fulness and 
athletic forms of the lovely females of the country. If the 
architect never thought of this analogy, it is not my fault; it 
would be a handsome apology for him, and it enables me to 
hint at the characteristic roundness and beauty of the lovely 
Senoritas of Bogota. As the other churches are not interest- 
ing structures, I shall pass them over' in a summary way ; 
indeed I visited but few of them. 

61 



482 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

The Franciscans appear not to be such jolly fellows as 
the Dominicans. Their monastery in the square of Sao 
Francisco, where I resided, is ample. The church ranges on 
the west side of the square, so that the altar is at the north 
end ; the access is by spacious gates on the south and east 
sides. The choir, very judiciously, is placed in a gallery at 
the south end, so that the space in the nave below is open to 
the congregation ; the more necessary, as there are no aisles : 
it is, like several others, a long spacious single hall, much 
disfigured with senseless gilding on the walls and ceiling. 

Within the church, on the west side, a gate opens upon 
the first cloister or square of two stories, with ample corri- 
dors on all sides above and below. The walls of the lower 
corridor are covered with large pictures, wars of the con- 
quest and pious subjects, which were in a style that did not 
induce any enquiries on my part : a surly superior of the 
order manifested " the malignity of a monk" by the con- 
tortions of his face, his scowling eye, and tremulous lip, on 
seeing strangers, spectators. I said to myself, as Sterne said 
to an animal more useful and innocent, *' go, poor devil, I 
never quarrel with any of your family." I therefore mounted 
the stairs along with General Devereux, and we passed along 
the second gallery, and saw the third corridor. I was intro- 
duced here to one of the monks, and was not a little sur- 
prised to be accosted in the English language, ornamented 
with a very genteel brogue. I had some interviews after- 
wards with this Irish friar ; but it would, perhaps, not be 
treating him fairly to relate his lamentations over the decay 
and impending ruin of his order. I shall simply state, that 
the law which transferred the inmates of a monastery, when 
reduced to a given number, would, he said, before long, trans- 
fer that beautiful and comfortable and rich monastery to the 
republic ; not that he was unfriendly to liberty, but before 
the revolution their monasteries were full, and now they are 
almost empty : that, as the natives had no chance in their 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 483 

own country for preferment, in former times, the young men 
then generally entered into orders, and the beautiful sefioritas 
took orders too ; but now there are so many offices under 
this new government, besides the army and the navy, and a 
thousand other things, that the young men have forsaken 
the church to follow ambition ; and the young girls having 
a free will of their own — God help them ! — they prefer get- 
ting married to devoting their immortal souls to pious re- 
tirement ; that there were but a few in that monastery likely 
to live very long — and then this beautiful convent goes. I 
have, as far as possible, used his own ideas, though I have 
not succeeded in the simplicity and spirit of his expres- 
sions. 

There is another church of the Recollets of St. Diego, se- 
parated only by the upright wall from that of St. Francis, and 
one of the Holy Cross. There is a small tiled hut, in the 
north-west angle of the same square, dedicated to St. Hu- 
mildas, said to have been the first church constructed in that 
region, and, on the ceremonial days, it is never omitted in the 
processions or visitations. Some strangers pointed out to me 
a sort of gate-way, which crossed the street in the continuance 
from south to north of the line of the square. A convent 
of nuns occupied formerly, or may at this moment for 
what I know, the corner house to which the north side of 
the arch was attached. The gate- way had no gates below, 
but over the arch there was, and is, a passage between the 
nunnery and the church ; I accounted for this by the vow of 
retirement, and the obligation of frequent confession ; that 
the nuns might pass to mass or to confession unseen by the 
world they had abandoned ; or, if sick, they could have 
spiritual comfort, without exciting any curiosity from the 
idle people who walked below, and minded every body's 
business but their own ; but those strangers put a different 
construction on this gate- way passage — and what could I do 
in attempting to prove a negative. My sentiments, I con- 



484i VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

fess, were very much shaken by an incident that took place 
on Good Friday, which I may relate (if I do not forget it) in 
another place. 

The festivals of the Catholic countries are so numerous, 
that they are adapted rather for a tropical climate than for 
the temperate regions, which require more labour and the 
comforts of domestic firesides. Indeed, fertile as Colombia 
is, and rich in ample and triple harvests in the same year, 
and off the same ground, the religious festivals, if enforced 
as most of the regular orders of monks and some of the 
seculars would enforce them, must interfere seriously with 
the prosperity of a society which had reached a state of 
civilization and taste for the useful arts. The general, or 
predominant character of the festivals after the service or 
ceremonial, is that of relaxation and the enjoyment of inno- 
cent pleasures. In Lent, commencing with Ash- Wednesday, 
society assumes a sombre aspect— the privations and absti- 
nence enjoined for this austere and gloomy season, are some- 
what softened by the clerical contrivance of exaction in the 
issuing indulgences for the use of flesh meat ; which have 
been further reduced by the necessity which the priesthood 
found of refraining from the severity of the church discipline 
since the revolution. Passion week, in the intention of its 
religious services, is a series of commemorations ailegorically 
or dramatically displayed ; and circumstantially represent 
the passion or sufferings of Christ, from the event in the 
garden of Gethsemane ; the denial by Peter ; the arrest and 
betrayal by Judas ; the appearance before Pilate ; the scourg- 
ing, carrying of the cross, crucifixion, taking down from the 
cross, and transference to the sepulchre, and the resurrection 
on Easter- day : all these events, and others, being represent- 
ed by some act or device of the mass, make a very solemn 
impression, even without the pomp and circumstance which 
have been made to give it a deeper impression on the senses. 
Yet it is only on a comparatively few that the serious part 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 485 

of the ceremonial operates ; the pageantry has been carried to 
so great an excess here, that the spectacle arrests the imagi- 
nation of the ignorant, while upon the intelligent the moral 
force of the ceremonial is diminished or lost; and even 
the ceremonial of Good-Friday, in which all the inci- 
dents of the Passion are brought into view together, in 
the forms of images and paintings, excites more curiosity to 
see the show, than recollection or devotion towards the sacri- 
fice of the Atonement. Hence even this solemnity, in the 
excess of detailed ceremonial, mostly inspires a sensual in- 
stead of a moral regard, especially among those whose minds 
are least prone to abstractions or capable of making them. 
The ceremonial of the Passion Week at Bogota, very much 
outshows that at Goa, which I had supposed surpassed all 
others. Palm Sunday was a very gay day. The Monday 
succeeding was marked by a procession from the northern- 
most church, or Augustine's priory, to each in succession 
in the progress to the cathedral. A figure in wax, or com- 
position, whom I presume to have been the patron saint of 
that church, was carried on a platform or litter, beneath a 
canopy ; the platform sustained on the shoulders of men, 
who assumed a particular garb. The effigy of the saint 
was nearly as large as life, and painted in much the same 
style as the statuary in gypsum, usually hawked about the 
streets of our cities. The figures on the succeeding days, 
however, were many of them executed with tolerable skill 
in anatomy, and some taste in the drapery. These pro- 
cessions continued daily from the several churches ; and 
visits, it seems, were returned ; I confess that I did not 
feel so much curiosity as to inquire why or wherefore those 
visitations were made, and I could not account for them by 
the book. 

All business, public and private, seemed to be suspended 
during this week of processions. Good-Friday, however. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

concentrated the whole. It would be impossible in a small 
volume to give the details ; what is here is but an imperfect 
sketch ; for the various churches and chapels had their pe- 
culiar effigies — and the morning was passed in visiting with 
one set of effigies those of another church. About three 
o'clock the general procession from all the churches to the 
cathedral, began to flow in that direction. A military guard 
led the van, and, in succession, about fifty platforms or lit- 
ters passed. It would be vain and useless to particularize 
all. I shall notice a few of the most conspicuous. The 
monastic orders, in their robes of service or surplices, with 
stoles, appeared with the emblematic figures of their church- 
es — the civil authorities, alcaldes, and other officers, and 
the national functionaries — strangers who were specially in- 
vited to the funccion — and private citizens, bearing wax- 
tapers ; after several of the emblematic saints had passed, 
various scenes of the passion were exhibited in statuary ; 
the carrying of the cross very handsomely executed as to 
art ; the whipping at the pillar not so well executed ; but, after 
this platform, or litter, came some Dominican friars, and pe- 
nitents in black, excepting two very brawny friars^ whose 
bodies were naked to the waist, and who held cats of nine- 
tails in their hands, with which every now and then they sa- 
luted their naked shoulders ; I was assured that the cats 
were dipt in a red-lead liquid, but I did not see it, though 
the exhibition of the naked shoulders and the harmless cats 
were too much for my taste in religious exercises. On 
other litters, the nailing on the cross, the elevation of the 
cross — and the two thieves — the taking down : — after the 
platform, on which was depicted the crucifixion, came ano- 
ther, bearing the Virgin Mother, attired in imperial style ; 
two or three other litters followed, and the procession closed 
with a body of the regular infantry, handsomely equipped, 
and exemplarily diligent to order and pace— while their fine 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 487 

band of musical instruments were performing the Marseillois 
Hymn in excellent style. 

Those platforms or litters were carried by men dressed in 
a gray monkish garb, their faces very generally masked, some 
with ludicrous conical caps of eighteen inches height, and a 
black crape over the fece with three holes. Each wore san- 
dals of better than the common wear, and each carried a staff 
of about four feet six inches long, with an iron crutch on the 
end, and, when the procession halted, the platforms rested on 
those crutches. I did not enter the cathedral, owing to the 
great pressure; but the service is established in the ritual, 
and unless it was the music, nothing was to be added to the 
observations already made. 

The private service had continued during the previous 
night, and it was four o'clock in the evening before the whole 
was terminated. About six o'clock I was sitting in the 
gallery of my residence, which was on the north face of 
the Plaza of St. Francis, the street which formed that 
side of the square, extended east and west ; the west descent 
was crossed by the archway between the nunnery and the 
church before noticed ; looking along the street under that 
arch I observed an unusual bustle, and a detachment of the 
guard turned out in front of their barracks on the opposite or 
south face of the plaza, which a civil officer conducted to 
the place where the disorder appeared ; I followed to see the 
result, and had just arrived in front when txvo friars were 
brought out, and conducted under charge of the guard. I 
was so close as to see the features of these two persons, in- 
deed so close that in a few days afterwards, upon visiting the 
monastery to which they belonged, they descried me, and 
one said to the other, in my hearing, *' he was there — he 
saw us," and in very high glee appeared to narrate the affair 
of their arrest on Good Friday ; — I should not have thought 
the incident worth a remark, for the house they were taken 
out of was a brothel. 



188 ¥ISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

The ecclesiastical affairs of Colombia have been much de- 
ranged by the revolution, and will require some time for re- 
gulation. The disaffection of some of the superior clergy, 
as the archbishop of Caracas, the vacancy of that of Bogota, 
the bishoprics of Cuenca and Guayana, and the death of 
others, the vacancies of which it has been deemed proper 
not to fill until it shall be ascertained whether the policy of 
the court of Rome will bend to events, or render it expedient 
for South America generally to establish an American pa- 
triarchate, entirely independent of the pontifical interference. 

Under the colonial state the ecclesiastical jurisdiction did 
not correspond with the governmental. Panama, Quito, Cu- 
enca, and Maynas, within the now Colombian territory, were, 
under Spain, suffragans of Lima, in Peru. This incompa- 
tibility has been already remedied ; but it is contemplated to 
constitute a third archbishopric in Quito, and to arrange the 
hierarchy, so that a more compact and consistent superinten- 
dency may prevail, as was the original purpose of creating 
bishops and archbishops, whose titles imply no more than 
that of surveyors, inspectors, or stewards. 

The archbishopric of Bogota, which was constituted in 
1561, had for suffragans Cartagena, Santa Marta, Popayan, 
and Merida. The cathedral of Bogota had in its establish- 
ment, prior to the revolution, sixteen prebendaries, and three 
parishes, but whether the prebends were appropriated provi- 
sions for the titularies, or salaried officers derived from the 
general revenues of the diocese, I could not learn. The 
parishes were, 

1. N. S. de las Nueves. 2. Santa Barbara. 3. San Vic- 
torino. 

There were two convents of the order of St. Dominic, one 
called of Recolleccion ; the other N. S. de las Aguas. 

There were three convents of St. Francis : — 1, That in 
the Plaza on the river of the same name. 2. That of Vera 
Cruz. 3. The Recollets of St. Diego. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 489 

There were two convents of St. Augustine, one of which 
is at the entrance of the city on the north side from Tunja, 
which is called a hermitage, I presume from the austerity of 
their vows, and is dedicated to N. S. de Egypto, occupied 
by the monks of La Merced. The other is that whimsically 
placed on the summit of a steep peak in the rear of the city, 
and dedicated to N. S. de Monserrat, only occasionally 
used by poor innocent fanatics. 

A convent of La Compania Chiquita, for novices. 

A convent of St. Juan de Dios, to which is annexed the 
charge of the hospital of San Pedro, whose benevolence is 
truly Christian, and admirable for its good works towards 
the wretched, and all gratis. 

Four monasteries for nuns — 1. Concepcion ; 2. Santa Clara ; 
3. Barefoot Carmelites ; 4. Santa Ines de Monte Policiano. 

There are many chapels, such as those of Scgrarias, N. S. 
of Belen, the convent of N. S. de las Aguas, Las Cruces, 
and San Felipe. 

Annexed to the ecclesiastical establishments, were former- 
ly three colleges :■ — ^L Rosario, founded in 1652, with four 
fellowships, and privileges, such as belonged to Salamanca 
in Spain ; 2. St. Thomas, with an university founded in 
1621, and a library established in 1772 ; 3. St. Bartholo- 
mew, which was occupied, in 1823, by the national library be- 
fore noticed ; it consists of the library of the celebrated Mutis, 
and a number of others, which devolved to the public by con- 
fiscation. I spent several days among those books. There 
is a useless abundance of that species of learning, which has 
been exploded in the best seminaries of Europe ; but there 
was a great number of precious books, appertaining to va- 
rious departments of American history. The case of the 
Jesuits on their expulsion from Paraguay, I found there 
developed in several volumes pro and co7i. This library, if 
it be faithfully preserved, and the most meritorious works 

62 



490 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of modern times, in French, Italian, English, and Germao^ 
added, will be precious. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

visit to the cataract of Taquendama — the continuation of the plain— illusive ap- 
pearances.— ,S?<ac/ia village. — Franciscan Monastery — Fra. Jerome — hospitable 
reception — sup and sleep there — the convent and church. — The Funza river. 
— Nitre works-^farm of Canaos — varying landscapes — enter the forest — go 
astray into the shaft of a coal-pit — hear the cataract — feel the moisture of its 
vapours — steep precipitous winding descent — reach the head of the cataract — 
imperfect description — no guide — Humboldt. 

The cataract of Taquendama excites the curiosity of all 
visitors to Bogota ; Colonel Todd made up a party, in which 
we were comprehended. Besides Colonel Todd and his 
family, Mr. R, Adams, Serior Rovero, a young gentleman 
whose hospitality and disposition to render services to 
strangers, gives his name a deeper hold of the memory, 
several officers were of the party, altogether about ten in 
number, besides domestics. Colonel Todd had provided 
some refreshments in reserve, which those who visit the ca- 
taract should do ; and Serior Rovero had also made some 
provision, without either knowing what the other had done. 
The road, to within a few miles of the cataract, is very fine. 
We left the city about nine in the morning, passing south 
and crossing the branch of the mountain stream called Rio 
St. Augustin ; and, leaving the suburb, took a south-west 
direction till we reached the skirt of the lower mountain 
that protrudes from the Sierra Albaracin to the westward, 
when, winding around its base, the plain opened to the 
left or south-east, and to the right or south-west. The ap- 




\t 




J)rawn iv T.:Bircli irovi 




S. Kearny Ai^ ''. 



EAILILS 0¥ TAQUEKIDAM A , 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 491 

pe^rance of this plain, and its resemblance of a still sea, and 
islands, and promontories, harbours, bays, and bluffs, like 
those seen on the coast of the ocean, are very striking. There 
was no other variety but the sluggish serpentine movement 
of the Funza, till, at the end of nine miles, we reached the 
village of Suacha. This village was an early settlement of 
the Franciscan order, and it has a church and a very com- 
modious convent. The population around is by no means 
such as would seem to be competent to sustain a church and 
its monastery ; though its selection indicates a considerable 
native population at the period of foundation, which have re- 
moved to positions more retired, or are blended with the nu- 
merous classes of industrious, hard-working, hardy people. 
As our party was literally a party of pleasure, we laughed 
nearly the whole way, and it was too late to see the cataract 
when we reached the village ; seeing no sig?is of an inn, we 
rode up to the gate of the Franciscan convent, which was 
instantly opened to us by a brother, whom we found to be 
a native Indian, attached to the convent, and in its costume ; 
a full round-faced jolly friar, of much civility but few words. 
Our horses were taken care of, and, after being seated some 
time in a room adjacent to the patio, the guardian or principal 
of the convent, Fra. Jerome, and who is also the guardian of the 
Franciscans in that province, waited on us and invited us to 
a handsome parlour. His deportment was that of a gentleman 
conversant with society ; he was not more than thirty-five to 
forty years of age, without any appearance of austerity or re- 
serve ; he was sociable, intelligent, and liberal, and his coun- 
tenance brightened by a smile of which he did not seem to be 
conscious. When we had taken our seats, on some of the best 
chairs and couches I had seen in Colombia, some excellent 
Spanish wine, fruit, sweet pastry, and cakes, were introduced, 
and we spent the time in very agreeable conversation. The 
portrait of the guardian was suspended on the wall, and the 



492 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

likeness good; I inquired where it was executed; he told 
me that it was the work of a self-taught native, and had been 
presented to him by his parishioners as a testimony of their 
good wishes, and added gaily, " now we are a republic, these 
little testimonies of popular favour are of much more value 
than they would have been in former times." 

When night came on the apartment was quickly well 
lighted, and about 7 o'clock we were invited to the refectory* 
Passing through a spacious corridor, we entered the refec- 
tory, where we found several ample tables, sufficient for two 
hundred guests, one of which was laid out with viands 
adapted to our taste. Roast fowls, well- corned pork, vege- 
tables of different kinds, and good bread ; and chocolate of 
the best confeccion. The guardian took the head of the table, 
and his coadjutor the foot. What rendered this occasion 
remarkable, was, that it was the time of Lent, when animal 
food is prohibited to the faithful ; yet he sat and attended to 
our wants, he and his coadjutor partaking only of a light pa- 
nada or gruel. I had much acquaintance with Franciscans 
in my early years, and this conduct of Fra. Jerome afforded 
me so much more pleasure and surprise, as it was a proof, 
both in his easy deportment and gratuitous kindness, of the 
liberahty of the guardian. We feasted, without scruple, 
upon the good things, and, at his invitation, moistened our 
meal with potations of good wine. Their beverage the water 
of the pure fountain. After the repast we returned to the 
parlour, where, after about an hour we had a refresco of cho- 
colate, and continued in conversation till about nine o'clock ; 
when the generous priest completed his hospitable cares. A 
bed for each individual, with neat bedding, and a separate 
apartment, had been prepared ; and he conducted each to 
that which was, by his own arrangement, intended for us. 
He had been even so attentive, while he assigned a neat 
apartment to my daughter, he placed me in the chamber 
next to her. It is not necessary to say how agreeable our 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 493 

entertainment was. A message arrived in the night from 
Bogota, and he set out immediately, not affording us the 
opportunity of expressing our thanks. When we arose with 
the dawn our horses were ready, and some fine chocolate, 
with fresh baked cakes, were placed before us, under the di- 
rection of the jolly Indian friar. 

The village of Suacha is composed of houses erected with- 
out regard to regularity. The site is a projecting bank or 
slope from the mountain, six or eight feet above the plain. 
The church forms the south side of the quadrangle or patio, 
its west end on the road. A pair of ample gates opens on the 
north end. The front and depth being about one hundred 
and twenty feet ; the porch or entrance, and the patio, hand- 
somely paved. Adjacent to the north side of the quadrangle 
there was a handsome shrubbery or small garden, ornament- 
ed with many curious and beautiful shrubs, and on the east 
end a fine pottagery. The establishment bore the appearance 
of a recent restoration from antecedent ruin. About half a 
mile from the convent south, on a knoll or more elevated 
bank of earth, was erected a nitre factory, which had been 
very useful, but seemed to be going to decay, and, as it was 
early when we passed, no information was obtained concern- 
ing it. There are many such establishments in various parts 
of the country, but not well managed. 

On leaving Suacha, the descent is considerable and long 
to the plain, where the Funza makes its involutions so fan- 
tastically, as to wind round and approach another part of its 
own channel, forming that figure which in heraldry is de- 
nominated nebule ; the winding of the current often leaving 
but forty or fifty feet between the two curves : the breadth 
opposite the farm of Canaos, about four miles from Suacha, 
is about one hundred and twenty feet, which is passed upon 
a bridge, formed of great piles standing in the river about ten 
feet deep ; beams laid across the river upon those piles ; a 
bed of faggots laid across the trees, and upon which a bed 



49^ VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

of earth and gravel is well beaten. The farm of Canaos 
stands on a bank more elevated than Suacha, about thirty 
feet above the bank of the river, and is supplied with water 
for that irrigation which produces so much fertility, by means 
of a horse-mill, constructed on an artificial mound of mason- 
ry, over which there is an ample roof, but it is open all 
round. The water is carried, after being raised in spouts, to 
an elevated position, where a reservoir is constructed, from 
which the water is skilfully dispersed all round. The ground 
of this farm gradually rises to light forests more elevated in 
the rear, and the road to the cataract leaves the house to the 
left. Cattle of every kind are here abundant, and the track 
towards the falls lies over low verdant hills, with trees of small 
stature, and small clumps and thickets dispersed over the un- 
dulating green hills. The birds, which are neither heard nor 
seen in the plain, but which throughout the country abound 
in numbers and variety, and arrest admiration by the beau- 
tiful tints of their plumage, and the diversity and melody of 
their song, were now very numerous, and on our way the 
lark seemed to present itself on the path, rise into the air, 
and execute his carol, and again descend upon our path. I 
had found on the green banks along the road the daisy, of the 
species perennis, so much the theme and ornament of Eng- 
lish pastoral poetry. But we soon passed that region, and 
made a long gradual descent, when the plants of the tropics, 
and their blue, blue and gold, green, black, red, and yel- 
low plumed birds, displayed much more familiarity, and lit- 
tle fear at our approach. This mountain we were now de- 
scending, yields in its forests the celebrated bark, the chinco- 
na cordifolia, the most esteemed of which is said to be found 
in Loxa, a province of the republic. The forest trees, as 
we descended, rose with loftier heads towards the heavens, 
and assumed a greater bulk as we proceeded, very nearly 
south. Vegetation became more rich and luxuriant, the air 
more warm, but not unpleasant nor scorching ; and occa- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 495 

sionally the evidence of more than usual population and hus- 
bandry were conspicuous. The ranchos appeared construct- 
ed, not of timber as where the daisies grew, but of the bam- 
boo, where the ananas and bananas flourished, and the flowers 
spread their fragrance around. The cotton trees appeared like 
apple orchards in full blossom, the sugar-cane and its vigor- 
ous stalks, the Palmyra palm and its clustered cocoa nuts 
were not in thick clumps and groves, and almost forests, as 
in Hindustan, but standing at distances like the centinels of 
armies, compared with the multitudes of trees around. The 
orange shewed its golden coat, and a bamboo fence marked 
the cacao plantation, and told why a little rivulet bubbled 
to the ear, and stole away unseen. 

It would not be possible for a stranger, without a guidcy 
to wind his way, after passing the farm-house, on this long 
plain which formed a shoulder of the mountain. We had, in 
fact, nearly gone astray after entering the forest beyond the 
hamlets we had passed. A person at Suacha had volun- 
teered his services, and professed to be perfectly acquainted 
with all its labyrinths ; but he proved to be either an idiot 
or a knave, he knew nothing of the place. Having reached 
a point in the forest, where riding was no longer practicable, 
we arranged so that our horses should be placed at the near- 
est hamlet, and two domestics in charge of the supplies. 
Some of our friends from Bogota had been repeatedly there, 
but there were so many intersecting paths, leading in so ma- 
ny directions ; the forests were so thick and lofty, and the 
roar of the cataract was heard, but in what direction was 
not possible to determine, as it changed its tone frequently ; 
and the atmosphere, which was darkened by the volume of 
its vapour, was also moist and chilly. 

Our professed guide now undertook to direct us — he 
appeared to act as if perfectly at home — I imagine I see him, 
and he was no bad specimen of some of the paisanos ; he had 
mounted his own mule at Suacha, and he was an object 9f 



496 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

# 

some amusement to the Bogota gentleman— he wore a pair 
of leather breeches, which were originally good, but which 
extended to his muscular calf without concealing it. On his 
head a well made chip-hat, a good platilla shirt, with a broad 
collar that hung like a cape over his shoulders, and both tails 
of his shirt appeared to give him great pleasure ; they were 
ornamented with needle- work of angular shapes and forms 
in the Indian style of decoration, and, as is the fashion, hung 
over his leather galligaskins ; a pair of paragattas completed 
his personal equipment. After a descent of about two miles 
through the " woods, and wilds, and solitary glooms," we 
perceived that our guide, notwithstanding his eyes were as 
black as his hair, and both black as glistening jet, could 
not see his way — and he very frankly gave it up. Elizabeth 
and myself descended a path, which appearing to be more 
beaten than one adjacent, we followed its descent by holding 
against trees, and reached a small platform much trodden ; 
a dark cavern was the termination of this path; it was the 
opening of a coal pit, and the fragments of a fine fossil coal 
were at the mouth of the shaft ; we clambered back, de- 
scended another path, and found another coal- shaft. 

Our company, like us, had dispersed in different direc- 
tions, and it was some lime before our sergeant, under the 
directions of one of our friends, led the way : had there been 
a path or mark of human foot, we might have found the de- 
scent less laborious, but this route was unfit even for a mule, 
and the goat alone could descend it without apprehension. 
Midway down we found a flat piece of clear ground, and here 
we directed our provisions to be brought, and a fire lighted 
against our return : here the roar of the cataract became very 
loud. After very much fatigue, we gained a sort of bram- 
ble-covered knoll, from which we could disern, in the south- 
east, a very spacious Hacienda^ and all around it picturesque 
and imposing, beyond the Funza and above the falls — of 
which Ave had some anecdotes — not worth narrating ; a little 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 497 

farther down the Funza, behind a lofty bluff, opened like a 
lake upon the view. There had been a flood, its waters ap- 
peared yellow from the earth through which it had stolen 
along ; here we gained the naked bank beneath the bluff, and 
the Funza seemed like a yellow ribbon to the north-east, 
setting into a bason of about half a mile in length, and gi- 
ving an irregular space of about 500 yards broad. There 
appears to have been a broader issue to the cataract than at 
present : considerable quantities of broken stone have been 
formed into a bank, which is carried several feet into the bason 
above the margin of the steep ; and a much greater encroach- 
ment has been made on the debouche on the opposite side ; so 
that the line across, over which the water throws itself head- 
long on a flat rock forty feet below its first projection, and of 
about the same width ; the transverse line may be about 
twenty- four feet ; though I suspect it was originally as broad 
as the stupendous and wonderful chasm into which it falls at 
the second bound. No painting can convey any adequate 
idea of this extraordinary work of nature ; and, however cir- 
cumstantial a verbal description may be, the idea of what is 
there seen, cannot be but imperfectly expressed. I am not 
at all surprised, that none of the descriptions I had read of 
this cataract, conveyed to my perceptions any thing like 
what it really is. It cannot be seen with advantage at one 
place ; contiguous to the first bound of the river, the bason 
above, and the roll of the flood over the perpendicular steep 
upon the vast platform, are all clearly visible ; but the whole 
volume of the stream tumbling to the deep can only be partially 
and imperfectly seen there. We took another station on the 
north side of the chasm, so that the sun's beams, then about 
eleven o'clock, crossed the line of the cataract obliquely : from 
this point we could see about a third ol' the descending vo- 
lume of water ; but we could not perceive the bottom. While 
we stood in this position, this sublime object was never perhaps 
seen to more advantage. The water was discoloured by the 

63 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

yellow earth over which it flowed ; and when the torrent 
dashed upon the forty feet platform beneath it, the cloud of 
vapour, as it rose, illumined by the blaze of an ardent 
sun, gave an incessant glow of brilliant golden glory. De- 
scription by no means conveys a sufficient idea of the object : 
it seemed a halo with a disk of floating transparent gold, of 
perhaps twenty feet diameter, the exterior vapour exhibiting 
prismatic shades incessantly changing, renewing in new 
forms, and on the outer verge condensing in drops, which 
fell in showers like tears. The mind is beguiled, and time 
passes unfelt in the intensity of admiration and awful sub- 
limity of this spectacle, which on every aspect presents new 
beauties and astonishment. Returning to the verge of the 
cataract, I was induced to place myself on my breast to look 
into the chasm, and I succeeded with new emotions of ad- 
miration. I have not seen Humboldt's larger work, en- 
titled " Researches concerning the Institutions, ^c. with de- 
scriptions and viexvs of striking scenes in the Cordilleras >^^ 
In the 8vo edition in French, and the translation by H. M. 
Williams, Humboldt's description is imperfect. He very 
properly contradicts the account of Bouger, which gives the 
chasm a depth of sixty metres French, but he gives it a depth 
of 175 metres; which, as the metre is 39.37 inches English^ 
fifty metres would give 196 feet depth, which is more than 
Mutis and others have given. Those who are reputed to 
have measured the depth, which is by no means difficulty 
have differed from three to eight feet ; but the average of 
the computations gives 164 or 165 feet, which, as far as my 
eye is competent to judge, I believe to be near the true 
depth. I leaned over the perpendicular wall— for it is to all 
appearance a wall of regularly wrought and horizontally laid 
and ranged grey grit stone, and I could see the foam of the 
torrent agitate the bason below, where the rocks, rounded 
on their tops by the beating of the waters, were seen as if 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 499 

emerging from the waves of foam, like the play of otters, 
while the stream of the torrent itself, brilliant in its own ac- 
tion, appeared reduced to the size of the spout from a fire 
engine. Elizabeth was so apprehensive of danger when I 
only placed myself on my breast, with my head only over 
the side, that she held me by my feet; but Lieutenant 
Bache stood on the very verge with folded arms, and sur- 
veyed the abyss below with perfect composure. 

But, sublime as these views truly are, with the forests 
rising on each side from the crevice into lofty sloping hills, 
perhaps the most extraordinary peculiarities are yet to be no- 
ticed. I know no mode by which the idea of its character 
and figure may be conceived, but that of the reader forming 
to himself the idea of a gap or opening in the face of a moun- 
tain 200 feet high, and about 60 feet broad, at the foot of 
which a flood of 10 or 15 yards broad gushes through that gap, 
at the height of more than 7000 feet above the ocean, rolling 
over rugged precipices till it unites with the river Tocayma, 
one of the tributaries of the Magdalena. This is the aspect 
at the debouch in the valley below. Ascending then to the 
point from which the Funza thus issues, and entering the 
crevice from its west or open end, and groping along the 
rocky and difficult side of this gap ; the overhanging trees 
no longer cover the space ; but a lane, if I may so call it, of 
three-fourths of a mile long, formed by two walls perpendicu- 
lar and parallel, induces the suprised spectator to ask if these 
walls be not the work of art ? if man with the chissel and the 
hammer, the trowel, the level, and the plumb line, have not 
wrought them ? Those walls stand parallel, and distant about 
50 feet, and about 170 feet perpendicular height ; as uniformly 
fair on their faces as the best masonry of the Capitol, Their 
summits are only the feet of the forests, and the stream that 
has tumbled as it were from the great storehouse of the 
heavens, starts from the body of the foam, as if frighted by 
its own noise. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

But there is still another extraordinary feature of those 
walls. In looking over the lofty brink from above, I could 
discern, by a dark light glimmer, that the volume of the water, 
in its plunge over the mound, on the table of its first bound, 
left a space arched, or the quarter of an arc beneath ; at the 
second bound the arching was not so forward ; either the 
impulse was not so great behind, or its own gravity brought 
it, after a curve of about a sixth of the circle, headlong down, 
keeping its volume, but casting out its brilliant spray, and 
forming, by its action on the air, a never-ceasing shower; the 
more aeriform vapour rising in clouds, and making a play of 
sunbeams, with alternately refracted and suppressed prisma- 
tic lights over the abyss below. The opportunity of seeing 
behind and beneath the column of the cataract, exposes the 
structure of the wall over which it pours ; and adds, by the 
regularity of its form, to the wonders of this place. It is, 
like the sides, perpendicular, and meets the sides, forming as 
exact rectangles as any architectural structure. In the drawing 
that accompanies, prefixed to this chapter, it is attempted to 
give this distinctness, but unsuccessfully ; the elevation of 
the side walls, their parallel length of three- fourths of a mile, 
and the magnitudeof the column of the cataract at that dis- 
tance, could be but imperfectly expressed by the pencil, 
even on an ample canvass. The reader must, therefore, 
from the data, figure to himself the actual magnitude and 
masses, and the facts here given may then enable him to form 
some conception of this extraordinary work of the Great Ar- 
chitect of the universe. 



501 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

Geographical limits of Colombia — its Spanish, provincial, and political divisions- 
sketch of its progressive divisions — its present distribution into twelve inten- 
dancies — into provinces — cantons — parishes, &c. 

Colombia, as a nation, has become so conspicuous in 
every public relation, that any approximation towards a 
more perfect knowledge than has been heretofore possessed, 
must be useful. The Spanish territorial system was mutable 
and inconstant ; the policy of its government, both from its 
laxity and its jealousy, left something undone or imperfectly 
executed, and endeavoured to conceal whatever it had esta- 
blished. It is on the sea-line alone, with very few points of 
exception in the interior, that the limits w^hich separated the 
viceroyalty of New Granada from Peru, Brazil, and the set- 
tlements of other nations in Guayana, are accurately laid down. 
Between the governments of Portugal and Spain there had 
been an age of ncgociation and disputation, about the limits 
of interior regions, which fifty generations of monarchs could 
not rationally expect to see or hear of being occupied by a 
civilized population ; wilds, and forests, and fertile plains and 
valleys, more ample in their extent than European empires — 
rivers larger than the largest of Europe or Asia — soil and 
climate susceptible of every species of cultivation and pro- 
duction, were unquestionably embraced in these disputed 
regions, but disputed only for the gratification of that avari- 
cious ambition which covets possession without the capacity 
for enjoyment. 

As the new condition of South America, and its partition 
into seven republics — and probably th^ee more will arise, 
and divide Brazil — must continue to bt spoken of or de- 
scribed bv reference to the distribution which heretofore pre - 



50S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

vailed ; and as the changes which have already taken place, 
and which must continue to be made, under the representa- 
tive system, which carries with it into the remotest parts, the 
necessity of knowledge as to its social circumstances, I pro- 
pose here to give a brief sketch of the geographical position 
and bounds of Colombia, and of its political, civil, military, 
and ecclesiastical relations. 

When the revolution, which had been for more than thirty 
years preparing, had developed itself spontaneously, and 
about the same period in the same year, in all parts of Spa- 
nish America, the countries which now constitute the Re- 
public of Colombia consisted of two distinct governments — 
the Viceroyalty of New Granada, and Venezuela, or the 
Captain-generalship of Caracas. Colombia, which redeems 
the honour that was filched from the great discoverer by 
Vespucius, by assuming his name, had a peculiar right to 
render that act of justice. The two points of continental 
territory first discovered by Columbus, are within its limits. 
He entered the gulf of Paria by the strait called the Dragon's 
Mouth, on the first of August, 1498, the most eastern ex- 
tremity of the republic, and sailed thence along a considerable 
part of the coast westward. In his fourth voyage, in 1503, he 
discovered the country from Cape Gracios a Dios to Vera- 
gua, the most western point on the Atlantic waters. The 
discovery of those rich countries produced no other acqui- 
sition to Spain than the renown attached to their reputed 
riches andtheir extent. Charles V, reduced to necessity by 
ambitious wars, consigned to the Welsers, a mercantile house 
of Augsburg, in payment of a debt, the regions embraced 
in these first discoveries of Columbus ; and the history which 
succeeds, under the terrible misrule of those miscreants, pre- 
sents a melancholy picture of human depravity, when heated 
by the impulses of avarice, and which was endured until 
1550 ; in all which time the riches of the soil and products 
of agriculture were disregarded, in the fruidess search of gold. 
The captain-generalship was then established. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 503 

in 1728, a grant or privilege was given of those regions, 
for purposes of commerce and agriculture, to a company 
formed at Guipiscoa in Spain ; but, though there was some 
approach to the arts of civilized life, this possession by Spain 
was yet a drain from the resources of Mexico, which defray- 
ed the expenses of the government of Venezuela. The ac- 
cession of the celebrated Galvez to the ministry of Spain was 
productive of great and lucrative changes in the administra- 
tion of the Indies, as the Spaniards were accustomed to de- 
nominate their possessions in America. A system which 
separated the fiscal concerns from the political authority, in 
imitation of that of France, was introduced in 1777, under 
the same denomination of intendancies ; which, though it 
gave a greater security and better knowledge of the revenues, 
rendered little benefit to the country, and none to the popu- 
lation, for under this system accumulating abuses and op- 
pressions, rivalling the most barbarous periods of history, 
affected the captain- generalship of Caracas, which continued 
to suffer till the revolution, when a convulsion, less sanguinary 
and cruel than the cold and silent misrule of Spain, put an 
end to its domination and its abuses. The country, under 
various modifications and distributions of local jurisdiction 
and regulation, comprehended, in 1810, the provinces which 
will be noticed after giving a similar sketch of the viceroyalty 
of New Granada. 

The countries which subsequently composed this viceroy- 
alty, were explored soon after the discovery, by Ojtda and 
Nicuessa, Nunez de Balboa, Benalcazar, and Quesada, and 
held under a fluctuating authority. In 1718, New Grenada 
was constituted a viceroyalty, but in 1724 it was again re- 
duced to a dependence upon Peru, in which state it conti- 
nued till 1740, when the viceroyalty was once more established, 
and comprehending Quito and Guayaquil under its jurisdic- 
tion. Caracas was founded in 1566 by Losada ; Bogota in 
1538, by Quesada. The various political, military, civil. 



604? 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 



juridical, and ecclesiastical authorities were, at the breaking 
out of the revolution, as follows : — 

ANCIENT SPANISH PROVINCES. 



JVew Grenada, 


Venezuela. 


Antio'quia, 


Caracas, 


Cartagena, 


Cumana, 


Choco, 


Guayana, 


Ciienca, 


Merida, 


Casanare, 


Maracaybos 


Darien, 


Varinas, 


Cundinamarca, 


Barcelonaj 


Guayaquil, 


Coro, 


Maynas and Quixos, 


Margarita, 


Neyba, 


Los Llanos 


Jaen de Brocomoros, 




Panama, 




Quito, 




Popayan, 




Rio Hacha, 




Santa Marta, 




Veragua, 




Pamplona, 




Tunja, 




Socorro, 




Mariquita, 





The political, civil, military, and ecclesiastical establish- 
ments, were frequently varied ; and hence it is, that no two 
books, nor the accounts of any two persons, ten years apart, 
bear any consistent agreement. The following are the ar- 
rangements of authority in 1810: 







JSfew Grenada. 


Ve7iez7iela, 


Atjdiencias 


, C Bogota 


Caraccas. 


or High Courts ^ Quito. 






Bogota, 1 


Guayra, 


TV» 


Cartagena, 


Porto Cabello, 


JVlILITART COM 

MANDERIES 


V Boccachica, 
Porto Bello, 
^ Chagres. 


Barcelona, 
Core. 


iNTENDAirOT— 


(none) 


Caracas. 


Archbishopkics — Bogota, 


Caracas. 






'^Antioquia, 


Merida, 






Cartagena, 


Maracaybo, 






Cuenca, 


Guayana, 


Bishophics — 


'^ 


Maynas, 
Panama, 
Popayan, 






tQuito. 




MlKTS**" 


5 Bogota, 


Caracas, (for a local coarse cur- 






I Popayan, 


rency). 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 505 

JVew Grenadd. Venezuela. 

^ rCartagena, Barcelona, 

g I Chagres, Cumana, 

g Atlantic'^ Porto Bello, Guayra, 

PH I Santa Marta, Angostura of Guayana, 

m LRio Hacha, Margarita, 

« Pacific 5" *^'^^y^1''''' Maracaybo. 

o i^acinc^p^jj^j^^^ Puerto Cabello. 

By the fundamental law, passed by the constituent con- 
gress at Cucuta, 18th July, 1821, it is declared that the ter- 
ritory of Colombia comprehends all that was within the an- 
cient boundaries of the Captain generalship of Venezuela 
and the Viceroyalty of New Granada. The territorial limits 
are those recognised by the Spanish government. The 
divergency of the line of coast on the ocean is sufficiently 
marked ; but the separation from Brazil, the Guayanas, and 
some parts of the Peruvian boundary, are yet undetermined. 
It was presumed until 1824, that the north-west boundary of 
Veragua was the extremity of the Colombian territory; but 
a decree of the Spanish monarch, issued at the Escurial in 
1803, declared the whole coast of ancient Terra Firma from 
Cape Gracios d Dios, (which embraces all that coast called by 
the British the Mosquito Shore,) belongs to the jurisdiction 
of New Grenada. It is, however, probable, that the Colom- 
bian government had political motives, very honourable to 
their sagacity, in asserting this claim, and that, having accom- 
plished its purpose, the territory north of Veragua will be 
recognised as part of Guatimala, to which it appertained un- 
der the aboriginal rule. This claim would, if maintained, 
bring reproach upon the Colombian republic, besides dis- 
putes and ill blood, as the looseness of the royal decree would 
admit of a construction that would cover Costa Rica, if not 
the principal part of Nicaragua. 

Taking the geographical points in positions different from 
what has been heretofore usual, by a transverse line east and 
west, commencing at the debouche of the Oronoco, in 9 deg. 
20 min. north, and 60 deg. 10 min. west, and carrying it 

64 



506 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

along the plane to the bay of St. Miguel, in the bay of Panaraaj 
in 8 deg. 30 min. north, and 78 deg. 10 min. west j this 
line of 18 deg. of longitude, may serve as a base of dimen- 
sions. Drawing another line perpendicular to and crossing 
this north and south, commencing at Cape Vela, in the Car- 
ribbean Sea, in 12 deg. 20 min. north, and passing on the 
plane to St. Nagri, on the Maragnon, in 4 deg. 20 min. 
south, we have a medium length of the republic, of 16 deg» 
of latitude : and as, beneath the equator, the degrees of lati- 
tude and longitude do not materially differ, for a general view 
we have 1,090,000 square miles of 60 to the degree, which 
is still considerably under the true amount. 

The distribution of provincial jurisdiction has undergone 
some partial changes since the formation of the constitution 
of 1821 : Quito was separated at an early stage into two 
provinces, called Assuay and Quito. Barbacoas, on the Pa- 
cific, was separated into two provinces, and the department 
of the Apure was formed of a part of the plains formerly 
under the jurisdiction of Caracas : the territorial names have 
also undergone some changes; the department of which 
Tunja was the head, has been denominated Boyacca, and 
that of Maracaybo has taken place of Zulia ; but a more ge- 
neral and particular distribution was carried into operation 
in 1823-4, by which the whole territory of the republic is 
divided into twelve intendancies or departments, and subdi- 
vided into provinces, cantons, and parishes. The following 
is the detail now most recent and authentic : 

Departments, Provinces, &c. 

The Senate and Chamber of Representatives of the Colom- 
bian Republic, assembled in Congress, having considered — 

1. That the territory of the republic should have a regu- 
lar division of the departments and provinces, in regard to 
extent of territory and population, so as to afford every con- 
venience for the easy and prompt administration of tlie go- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. d07 

veniment in all its branches, and so contribute to the public 
happiness j in conformity with the 8th, 20th, 26th, 27th, 
and 29th articles of the constitution, have decreed : 

Article I. The whole territory of the republic shall be di- 
vided into twelve departments, and the capitals thereof shall 
be as follows : 



1. Orinoco, 


chief place Cumana. 


2. Venezuela, 


Caracas. 


3. Apure, 


Barinas. 


4. Zulia, 


Maracaybo 


5. Boyacca, 


Tunja. 


6. Cundinamarca, 


Bogota. 


7. Magdalena, 


Cartagena. 


8. Cauca, 


Popayan. 


9. The Isthmus, 


Panama. 


10. The Equator, 


Quito. 


11. Assuay, 


Cuenca. 


12. Guayaquil, 


Guayaquil. 



These twelve departments comprehend the following pro- 
vinces and cantons : 

Art. 11. Orinoco. 

1. Cumana, chief place Cumana. 

2. Guayana, Angostura. 

3. Barcelona, Barcelona. 

4. Margarita, Asuncion. 

^ 1. The cantons of the province of Cumana and its chief 
places are : 

1. Cumana. 4, Maturin. 7. Rio Caribe. 

2. Cumanacoa. 5, Cariaco. 8. Guiria. 

3. Aragua Cumanes. 6. Carupano. 

§ 2. The cantons of Guayana and its dependancies are : 

1. Angostura. 6. Caroni. 

2. Rio Negro and its dependancy Atabapo. 7. Upati. 

3. Alto Orinoco and its do. Caicara. 8. I,a Pastora. 

4. Caura and its do. Moitaco. 9. La Barceloneta, 

5. Guayana Viejo. 

\ 3. The cantons of the province of Barcelona and depen- 
dancies are : 

1. Barcelona. 4. Aragua. 

2. Piritu. 5. Pao. 

3. Pilar. 6. San Diego. 

f> 4. The cantons of Margarita and dependancies are : 

1. La Asuncion- 3. El Norte. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Art, III. The department of Venezuela comprehends the 
provinces of 

1. Caracas, chief place Caracas. 

2. Carabobo, Valencia. 

§ 1. The cantons of Caracas are : 

1. Caracas. 5. Sabana de Ocumare. 9. San Sebastian. 

2. Guayra. 6. La Victoria, 10. Ipire. 

3. Caucagiia. 7. Maracay. 11. Chaguarama. 

4. Rio Chico. 8. Cura. 12. Calabozo. 

\ 2. The cantons of Carabobo are : 

1. Valencia. 4. San Carlos, 7. Carora, 

2. Puerto Cabello. 5. San Felipe. 8. Tucuyo. 

3. Nirgua, 6. Barquisimeto. 9. Quibor. 

Art, IV. The department of Apure comprehends the pr©- 
vinces : 

1. Barlnas, 4. Guanarito. 7. Guanare. 10. Pedraza^ 

2. Obispos, 5. Nutrias. 8. Ospinos, 

3. Mijagual. 6. San Jaime. 9. Araure. 

\ 1. The cantons of Apure are : 

1. Achaguas. 3. MantecaL 

2. San Fernando, 4. Guasdualito. 

Art, V. The department of Zulia comprehends the pro= 
vinces of 

1. Maracaybo, chief place Maracaybo. 

2. Coro, Coi'o. 

3. Meridaj Merida, 

4. Trujillo, Trujille, 

^ 1. The cantons of Maracaybo are : 

1. Maracaybo. 3. San Carlos de Zulia. 5. Puerto Alta Gracia- 

2. Perija. 4. Gibraltar. 

\ 2. The cantons of the province of Coro are i 

1. Coro, 3. Paraguana, chief place Pueblo Nuevo. 

2. San Luis. 4. Casigua. 5. Cumarebo- 

^ 3. The cantons of the province of Merida are ; 

1. Merida. 3. Ejido. 5. La Grita, 7, Tachira. 

2. Mucuchies. 4. Bayladores. 6, San Cristoval. 

^ 4. The cantons of the province of Trujillo are : 

1. Trujillo. 3. Bocono, 

2. Escuque. 4. Carache, 

Art, VI. Boyacca comprehends the provinces of 

1. Tunja, chief place Tunja. 

2. Pamplona, Pamplona. 

3. Soccoro, Soccoro, 

4. Casanare, Pore 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 509 

■^ 1. The cantons of Tunja are : 

3. Tunja. 5. Sogomoso. 9. Suata. 

2. Leiva. 6. Tensa y Guatoque. 10. Tumerque, 

3. Chinchinquira. 7. Cocuy. 11. Garagoa. 

4. Muzo. 8. Santa Rosa. 

^ 2. The cantons of Pamplona are : 

1. Pamplona. 4. Salazar. 7. Jiron. 

2. St. Jose de Cucuta. 5. Concepcion. 8. Bucaramanga. 

3. Rosario de Cucuta. 6. Malaga. 9. Pie de Cuesta. 

^ 3, The cantons of Soccoro are : 

1. Soccoro. 4. Charala. 6. Valez. 

2. San Gil. 5, Sapatoca. 7. Moniquira. 

3. Barichara. 

§ 4. Casanare cantons are : 

1. Pore. 3. Chire, at present Tame. 5. Macuco, 

2, Arauca. 4. Santiago, at present Taguana. 6. Nunchia. 

Art. VII. Cundinamarca comprehends the provinces of 

1. Bogota, chief place Bogota. 

2. Antioquia, Antioquia. 

3. Mariquita, Honda. 

4. Neiva, Neiva. 

§ !• The cantons of Bogota are : 

1. Bogota. 5, Fusagasuga. 9. Ubate. 

2. Funza. 6. Caquesa. 10. Chocontao 

3. Meza. 7. San Martin. 11, Guaduas. 

4. Tocaima. 8. Zipaquira. 

§ 2. The cantons of Antioquia are : 

1. Antioquia. 3. Rio Negro. 5. Santa Rosa de Osos. 

2. Medellin. 4. Marinilla. 6. Nordest y Remedios, 

^ 3. The cantons of Mariquita are : 

1. Honda. 3. Ibague. 

2. Mariquita. 4. La Palma- 

§ 4, The cantons of Neiva are : 

1. Neiva. 3. La Plata. 

2. Purificacion. 4. Timana. 

Jrt. VIII. The department of Magdalena contains the 
provinces of 

1. Cartagena, chief place Cartagena. 

2. Santa Marta, Santa Marta. 

3. Rio Hacha, Rio Hacha. 

I 1. The cantons of Cartagena are : 

X. Cartagena. 6. El Carmen. 11. Lorica. > 

2. Baranquilla. 7. Tolu. 12. Mompox. 

3. Soledad. 8. Chinii. 13. Majagual. 

4. Mahates. 9. Maguugue. 14. Sinriiti. 

5. Corosal. 10. San Benito Abad. 15. Islas de St. Andres. 



510 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

§ 2. The cantons of Santa Marta are : 

1. Santa Marta. 3. Ocaiia. 5. Tamakmeque. 

2. Valle Dupar. 4. Plato. 6. Valencia de Jesus. 

•j 3. The cantons of Rio Hacha are : 

1. Rio Hacha. 2. Cesar, chief place Juan de Cesar. 

Art. IX. The department of Cauca comprehends the pro- 
vinces of 

1. Popayan, chief place Popay an. 

2. Choco, Quibdo. 

3. Paste, Pasto. 

4. Buenaventura, at present Iscuande. 

\ 1. The cantons of Popayan are : 

1. Popayan. 5. Roldanillo. 9. TuMa. 

2. Almaquer. 6. Buga. 10. Toro. 

3. Caloto. 7. Palmira. 11. Supia. 

4. Cali. 8. Cartago. 

■) 2. The cantons of Choco are ; 

1. Atrato y Quibdo. 2. San Juan y Novita. 

^ 3. The cantons of Pasto are : 

1. Pasto. 2. Tuquerris. 3. Ipiales. 

§ 4. The cantons of Buenaventura are i 

1. Iscuande. 3. Tumaco. 5. Raposo, at present La Cruz. 

2. Barbacoas. 4. Micay y Guapi. 

Art. X, The department of the Isthmus comprehends the 
provinces of 

1. Panama, chief place Panama. 

2. Veragua, Vetagua. 

§ 1. The cantons of Panama are : 

1. Panama, 3. Chon-eras. 5. Los Santos. 

2. Porto Belo. 4. Nata. 6. Yabisa. 

^ 2. The cantons of Veragua are : 

1. Santiago de Veragua. 3. Alanje. 

2. Meza. 4. Gaimi y Remedios. 

Art. XI. The department of the Equator contains the pro- 
vinces of 

1. Pinchincha, the capital Quito. 

2. Tmbabura, Ibarra. 

3. Chimborazo, Riobamba. 

^1. The cantons of Pinchincha are : 

1. Quito. 3. LaTacunga. 5. Esmeraldas. 

2, Machachi. 4, Quijos. 

§ 2. The cantons of Imbabara are : 

1. Ibarra. 3. Cotacachi. 

2, Otabalo, 4. Cayambc. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 511 

§ 3. The cantons of Chimborazo are : 

1. Riobamba. 3. Guano. 5. Alausi. 

2. Ambato. 4, Guaranda. 6. Macas. 

Art. XII. The department of Assuay comprehends the 
provinces of 

1. Cuenca, chief place Cuenca> 

2. Loja, Loja. 

3. Bracamoros y Mainas, Jaen. 

^ 1. The cantons of Cuenca are : 

1. Cuenca. 3. Gualaseo, 

2. Canari. 4. Jiron. 

^ 2. The cantons of Loja are : 

1. Loja. 3. Carlmanga. 

2. Zaruma. 4. Catacocha. 

^ 3. The cantons of Bracamoros y Mainas are: 

1. Jaen. 2. Borja. 3. Joveros. 

Art. XIII. The department of Guayaquil contains the 
provinces of 

1. Guayaquil, chief place Guayaquil, 

2. Manabi, Puerto Viejo. 

§ 1. The cantons of Guayaquil are : 

1. Guayaquil. 3. Babahoyo. 5. Punta de Santa Elena, 

2. Daule. 4. Baba. 6. Machala. 

^ 2. The cantons of Manabi are : 

1, Puerto Viejo. 2. Jipijapa. 3, MonteCristi. 

DEPARTMENT LAW. 

Art. XIV. Those cantons are noticed as coming within 
the constitutional provisions of Art. 8, 20, 26, 27, and 29 ; 
but those which come under the authority of political 
judges, and the administrators of vhe public treasury, may 
be united two or more cantons to form a circuit, under 
the authority of one political judge. 

Art. XV. To each of the cantons designated in this law, 
not having municipalities, through the loss of population or 
other causes, the executive power will provisionally unite 
two or more next adjacent, and make it known to congress 
in conformity with Art. 155 of the constitution ; but with- 
out prejudice to those cantons whose territory may be too 



512 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

extensive for their population ; two or more political judges 
shall be established by the executive. 

Art. XVI. But the heads of cantons which exist with a 
municipality, can regulate and act according to this article. 

Consequently where there shall be erected and are erected 
new heads of those cantons, according to the actual exist- 
ence of parishes ; and the executive power having been 
augmented with the legal requisites, the books of correspon- 
dence, title, and papers of the first class, and the seal of the 
secretary. 

Art. XVII. The executive power to fix provisionally the 
limits of cantons created by this law. Those of the pro- 
vinces and departments, according to the best judgment 
possessed. The executive power, nevertheless, shall consult 
the maps, and provide the best information for congress. 

Art. XVIII. The province of Caracas is separated from 
that of Carabobo, by a line commencing at the eastern ter- 
mination of the parish of Cuyagua, thence by a direct line 
from the sea to Punta Cabrera, on the lake of Valencia, and 
continued by a line thence to the town of Magdalena, west 
of the Villa de Cura, and by Calabozo to the Apure, com- 
prehending in this province the cantons which are designa- 
ted under Article IV. 

Art. XIX. The new province of Carabobo, which is com- 
posed of the territory marked as above, preferring those 
bounds before actually possessed in relation to other provin- 
ces, such as Guanare, Gspinos, and Aurare, which apper- 
tain to Varinas, having for limit the passage of the river 
Coxede at Caramacate, of the new province of Carabobo. 

Art. XX. The Department of Quito corresponds in its 
boundaries, which separate it from those of Cuenca and 
Guayaquil, and on the literal from the port of Atacames to 
near the embouchure of Esmeraldas, thence to the mouth 
of Ancon, the meridional limit of the province of Buena- 
ventura, on the coast of the South Sea, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 513 

Art. XXI. The new province of Manabi, in the depart- 
ment of Guayaquil, occupies that part of the territory of 
Esmeraldas of which the coast extends from the Rio Co- 
lonche to Atacames, inclusive. In the interior, having for 
limits those which formerly separated this part of Esmeraldas 
from the province of Quito. 

Art. XXII. The department of Cauca is divided from 
that of the Equator, by the limits which separate the pro- 
vince of Popayan on the river Carchi, which serves to mark 
the limits of the province of Pasto, 

Art. XXIII. The new departments, which have not sent 
senators and representatives, will elect them at the approach- 
ing assemblies of the people ; and the new provinces, in the 
mean time, may hold their assemblies at the places last occu- 
pied until the arrangement shall be entirely completed. 
Dated Bogota, 23d June, 1824. 

Jose Maria del Real, Pres. of Senate, 
Jose Rafael MosquERA, f, P» H. ofRep^ 

Antonio Jose Caro, ? t.^ i . c . • 

T^„^ T Q > Members and becretaries, 

Jose JoAc^uiM ouarez, 5 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 

Meeting of first representative congress— in March, 1823— their mode of pro- 
ceeding — peculiar forms of communication from the executive— unmean- 
ing titles and epithets discarded — vice-president's message — ^report of the 
minister of foreign relations— interesting as an historical epitome— congress of 
Panama — itsobjects— relations with European states — treatment of agents to 
Spain— congress of Aix-la-Chapelle. 

The first popularly elected congress of Colombia, was to 
have assembled at Bogota, in January, 1823 ; it had not yet 
proceeded to business when I arrived, on the 3d of February, 

65 



614 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

and it was some time in March before there was such a 
number of each house as was deemed requisite to proceed 
with becoming regard to the authority to be exercised in 
public business. Quito, and Pastos, and Guayaquil, though 
within the political power and connexion of the republic, 
had not yet sent representatives. But they were expected, 
and some arrived before the session had made much pro- 
gress. My inclinations, and the business in which I was 
engaged, made me a frequent spectator and auditor of the 
proceedings; and, although there were some members who 
had never before seen any other elective body than a cahildo^ 
such was the facility and order of the proceedings from be- 
ginning to end, that, if I had not been aware that it v^^as a 
first session of a new national legislature, I should have 
supposed they had been conversant with the transaction of 
business in deliberative assemblies, from their earliest years» 
The forms of proceeding, generally, resembled those of the 
United States, but with some modes of the French assem- 
blies, derived, I suppose, from the Spanish cortes, such as 
the transactions usual to our permanent secretary of Senate 
and House of Representatives, were performed here by mem- 
bers of the body, nominated by the presiding officer in each 
house. The President, elected from their own body by the 
Senate, was General Urdaneta, and I could not but admire 
the self-possession, preparedness in the duties, and the 
promptness with which matters of order were decided. The 
only circumstances that appeared to me characteristically dif- 
ferent from deliberations in Congress at Washington, waSj 
that as the speaking members in the United States are more 
numerous than in the British Parliament, so at Bogota they 
were more numerous in relation to the number of the cham- 
ber, than in Washington ; but as, at Washington, speeches 
were made as if length was to determine the degree of ex- 
cellence, while at Bogota, with perhaps the language best 
adapted to eloquence, there was a conciseness and brevity 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 515 

which enabled the auditor to retain the subject of discussion 
without perplexity, or the confusion inevitable where there 
is an excessive expenditure of words. 

As this was an opening of the great legislating power of 
the republic, it was necessarily to be expected that a state of 
the nation would be presented by the different functionaries 
who occupied the departments of the interior, of foreign af- 
fairs, the treasury, the army, and navy. The practice in re- 
lation to these functionaries differs from that of the United 
States and of Great Britain. The heads of departments are 
not members of either house, but when they report to con- 
gress they attend in person, read their own communications, 
and have seats, in order to be able to answer any inquiries that 
may be made at the time of delivery, and do explain and an- 
swer exceptions in such cases orally. Whether this be the 
result of a special law or a regulation I do not at present re- 
collect, but I believe it to be an established form ; and it is 
unquestionably judicious, the secretaries having there no 
other privilege than to make explanations. 

These communications were delivered, and they were so 
full and particular, that no labour of private inquiry could 
bring together so ample a body of authentic matter. On the 
threshold, however, a question of form arose; it was pro- 
pounded by the vice-president to this effect : — What shall 
be the form by which the executive shall, in its communica- 
tions, address the chambers of congress ? This question in 
both houses served to mark the measure of their intelligence. 
I did not hear the debate in the house of representatives, 
where I understood a member proposed, that the presiding 
officer should be addressed your majesty ^ which produced a 
great deal of pleasantry ; in the senate there was no doubt on 
the subject ; it was decided in five minutes, that no title dif- 
fering from the forms of civility between man and man should 
be admitted — that no title could be superior to that of a ci- 
tizen, and it was determined that the presiding officer of 



516 VISIT TO eOLOMBIA. 

each house should be addressed without any preposterous 
honourable or excellency ^ but by simple senor, sir, or Mr, 

As the communications from the vice-president and heads 
of departments would of themselves make a respectable vo- 
lume, and that of the treasury was not presented until after I 
had left Bogota, I shall give here such an abstract as will an- 
swer all the purposes of general information, and afford an 
authentic view of the state of the republic at the commence- 
ment of 1823. 

The vice-president St. Ander's message, was presented 
the 17th April, 1823— -year 13 of the republic ; that of the 
secretary of exterior relations, Pedro Gual, the same day; 
the report of the minister of the war department, P. Bri- 
ceno Mendez, on the military establishment, 18th April. 
Another on the naval department, dated the 13th : both 
departments being at present distributed into separate bu- 
reaux, under the same chief. The report of the minister of 
the interior, Jose Manuel Rostropo^ was presented on the 
22d of April, and that of the minister of finance, J. M. Cas- 
tillo, on the 5th of May, 1823. 

The executive message, as well as those from the other 
departments, were all printed previous to delivery, and pre- 
sented to the members in their seats as soon as they were 
respectively read. The vice-president denominates the body 
he addressed, the Second Congress of Colombia, referring to 
that body which had met at Cucuta, in 1821-2, which framed 
the present constitution, as the first. The topics discussed 
were the efforts made to put an end to the contest with Spain, 
by amicable means, alluding to the mission sent to Madrid, 
in consequence of the truce and treaty of armistice concluded 
by president Bolivar with Morillo, near Truxillo, in 1820; in 
which he states that the agents, Messrs. Ravenga and Zea, 
were dismissed under disgraceful pretexts ; and that, in de- 
fiance of the truce, the Spanish fleet was reinforced, while 
'hat of the Republic was rendered by good faith inactive : 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. Sit 

that as there was no further hope, no overture would there- 
after be received, of which the preliminarj' was not an ex- 
plicit acknowledgment of the independence of the Republic. 

Allusions are made to the Congress to be assembled at 
Panama to give consistence, solidity, and a perpetual gua- 
rantee to the independence of all the states of the new world : 
notice of the transactions connected with General O'Donohu 
and Iturbide in Mexico ; the magnanimous recognition of Co- 
lombian independence by the United States of North Ame- 
rica, and the presence of a special agent (Colonel Todd) then 
in Bogota. He expressed the principles of good faith which 
will be observed towards all nations. That the Portuguese 
monarch had acknowledged Colombian independence also ; 
and that Seuor Echeverria had been designated to a diplo- 
matic mission to Lisbon, to adjust boundaries; but that the 
death of this respectable citizen had prevented it, as well 
as delayed a mission to which he was destined, to the court 
of Rome, in relation to ecclesiastical affairs ; but that another 
should be sent. 

That, in conformity with the fundamental law, three new 
departments had been annexed according to an organic law 
of October 2d, 1821, passed at Cucuta, they having been 
rescued from the power of Spain by the army under the 
liberator ; and that in these three new departments, as well as 
the pre-organised seven, the constitution and laws were esta- 
blished and respected ; the glory of fields of batUe, the lights 
of philosophy, the ministry of the altar, the influence of merit, 
reputation, and all the virtues uniting in love and devotion 
to the constitution. 

The predatory marauding and plunder of Morales on the 
coast, is noticed as the last agonies of disappointment and 
despair ; but that they had been productive of much private 
injury, and affected the treasury materially, already exhausted 
by a long exterminating war. 

Education, literary institutions, agriculture, commerce. 



Slg VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

are recommended to legislative guardianship ; and the fiscal 
concerns are specially referred to, and in providing new re- 
sources he recommends the abrogation of the Mesada eclesi- 
astica anualidadest and the Media anata, to which the clergy- 
were subjected. 

He recommends attention to the foreign public debt, the 
extinction of the principal, and the payment of the interest. 

He then congratulates Congress on the comparison of the 
past with the present ; when Congress sat at Cucuta, in 1821, 
Carthagena and Cumana, the isthmus of Panama, and Quito, 
were in the hands of Spanish forces ; Coro was agitated by 
Spanish emissaries, and Guayaquil threatened with a cruel 
anarchy; Maracaibo was occupied by a superior force ; Merida 
and Truxillo menaced ; an insurrection produced by Spanish 
agents in Santa Marta ; all reversed, and the enemy every 
where expelled. 

He recommended the more perfect organization of the army 
and militia ; and a provision for the disabled soldiers, the 
widows and orphans of those who shed their blood for the 
public liberties ; and provision for the naval force. 

The report of P. Gual, minister of foreign affairs, is a 
brilliant and an able production ; and must suffer by any 
abridgment; the heads are all that will be attempted. It 
opens by congratulating Congress, that in the midst of an 
unexampled war, of twelve years* duration, the rights of 
neutrals have been protected, and with fewer complaints than 
could have been expected under all circumstances ; notwith- 
standing some governments had not pursued the same liberal 
course. The principles recognised by the treaties of West- 
phalia and Utrecht, and the treaties that have grown out of 
more recent events, were in frequent contradiction ; the go- 
vernment of Colombia had therefore formed a common rule 
of conduct — that of not granting a privilege to any, which it 
would not yield to all. The result has been entirely suc- 
cessful : the heads discussed are, 1. The American States. 
2. United States. 3. Europe. 4. Spain. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 919 

The abdication by Ferdinand VII. in 1808, was the sig- 
nal of separation between the authority of Spain, and the de- 
pendance of South America ; from that period soldiers, 
philosophers, legislators, magistrates, and ministers have, with 
alternate success and defeat, constantly contended for in- 
dependence ; all have been tried and proved in the school of 
adversity ; and in despite of inexperience in the art of war, pro- 
digies of valour and triumph have fulfilled their hopes and 
wishes. The geographical position of Colombia made it, 
on the part of Spain, the rendezvous of her troops, destined 
to re-establish the terrible colonial system. Colombia was 
the advanced guard of the new world, and in expending her 
own blood she has saved that of her co-states, and fixed 
their union in policy and interest for ever. 

While the triumphs of Colombia resounded throughout 
the civilized world, the rest of the family of the same descent 
were either prostrate or distracted. Mexico by a strange per- 
version became an empire ; Peru was delivered by the arms 
of Chili and La Plata, and submitted to a protectorate (under 
St. Martin) ; Guatimala however declared for a republic ; and 
Colombia accomplished what the fundamental law had pre- 
ordained, by carrying the olive with the fasces of victory, to 
Quito and Guayaquil : and this happy moment was seized 
to carry into effect a great American federative system, in 
which the sovereignty, independence, and laws of each state 
should not only be secured to itself, but guaranteed against 
th? whole world — upon the following terms. 

1. The American states to be confederate perpetually, in 
peace and war, and to guarantee liberty, independence, and 
the integrity of their several territories. 

2. The uti posidetis of 1810, according to the demarca- 
tion of each viceroyalty under Spain, and of each captain- 
generalship, to be the boundary of each sovereign state, erect- 
ed under the constitutions or laws of the new states. 



520 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

3. The personal rights of citizens in commerce, naviga- 
tion, without distinction of persons, to be the same in person, 
property, trade, foreign and domestic, in every state, as to the 
state to which they belong, or as belongs to the citizens of 
the state they reside or travel in. 

4. An assembly to be held at Panama of two plenipoten- 
tiaries from each state, to serve as a point of contact in com- 
mon dangers, the interpreters of treaties, and arbitrators and 
mediators, in case of any dispute or difference. 

5. This treaty of perpetual alliance and confederacy, not 
to interfere with the sovereignty of any of the states, in regard 
to foreign nations. 

The usurpation of Iturbide, by disturbing Mexico, post- 
poned this congress, which was intended to assemble in 
1823. It was required of Mr. Santamaria, minister of Co- 
lombia at Mexico, to recognize the new emperor, though he 
had no instructions-— -(which he declined, and was thereupon 
ordered to depart) — events justified the good sense of San- 
tamaria. 

In the United States, the people from the beginning have 
been in constant sympathy with South America, and, in 1822, 
the government formally acknowledged the independence 
of Colombia ; an effect in a great measure due to the talents, 
intelligence, and zeal of Seiior Manuel Torres, our charge 
des affairs^ whose knowledge enabled him to enlighten the 
government on the interests which should render both na- 
tions dear to each other. He survived only to the 14th July 
of that year, to whom, as successor, Jose Maria Salazar has 
been appointed minister plenipotentiary. 

In this state of afRiirs, Colonel Charles Todd arrived in 
December 1822, with a special commission communicating 
the recognition of independence. 

In Europe, the court of Lisbon was the first to recog- 
nize the independent governments of New America, by its 
agent Juan Manuel Figuereido, in a note dated 11th August, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 52i 

1821, to the minister of Chile, and by a communication of 
Silvestre Pilinero y Fereira, minister of state to the king of 
Portugal, made it known, by a copy of his instruction, of 16th 
April, 1821. In consequence of which Jose Tiburcio Eche- 
verria was appointed to proceed to Lisbon, but prevented by 
his death. The changes in Brazil since that period are no- 
ticed, and no certain results were known. 

As early as 1811, the Grand Chancellor Romanzoff inti- 
mated to the agent in London, that the emperor of all the 
Russias had come to the resolution to admit our flag into all 
his ports on the same footing as other neutrals. Fraixe, the 
Netherlands, and the King of Sweden, have come to the 
same resolution, and Sweden has a consul general, (Lorich,) 
now in Bogota, for the purpose of concluding a provisional 
commercial arrangement, which will be laid before the legis- 
lature. 

In almost all parts of Europe the Colombian flag is re- 
spected ; the laws for encouraging our marine, passed at 
Cucuta, have contributed to this effect. An act of naviga- 
tion is wanting. The friendship of Great Britain is of great 
importance ; many of her people have crossed the sea to aid 
in our struggle : the parliament declared its ports would be 
open to our flag, 27th April, 1822. [Here are some ani= 
madversions on the transactions of Mr. Zea, a matter of cu- 
rious history, but too ample for this work.] 

Of Spain. — This of all governments appears to be the 
only one ignorant, that a nation destitute of every thing, with- 
out manufacturing industry, whose fertile soil is abandoned 
to sterility, and which knows not the means of improvmg 
its own condition, or extricating itself from the state of 
poverty and debasement, consequent on subjection to an ar- 
bitrary government for centuries ; who could not see that the 
extension of the constitutional system of Cadiz to the ancient 
possessions in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, was a 
perfect illusion. 

66 



522 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

The treaties concluded at Truxillo, 26th November, 1820, 
after so many years of slaughter and devastation, held forth 
the prospect of a better disposition. On that day General 
Pablo Morillo presented himself at Santa Ana, invested with 
full powers ; he greeted the Republic of Colombia and her 
illustrious president ; and two treaties, one for an armistice of 
six months, the other for regulating the mode of warfare con- 
sistent with civilization, were agreed upon and ratified. The 
formality of this negociation, the decorous and dispassionate 
language of the Spanish commanders, promised the most 
happy. results ; and Messrs. Jose Rafael Ravenga and Jose 
Tiburcio Echeverria were dispatched for Madrid, with full 
powers, dated at Bogota, 24th January, 1821, Two months 
of the armistice had expired, and full powers were given to 
procure a prolongation of the armistice, but it was not ob- 
tained, and the ministers embarked at Laguayra, in the Span- 
' ish frigate x\rethusa, 24th March, and landed at Cadiz, 14th 
May, 1821. 

A very different language from that held at Santa Ana as«= 
sailed them at Madrid, from persons known to be connected 
with the court. A new amnesty had been promulged for 
those whose triumphant assertion of their independence was 
the theme of universal admiration. The plenipotentiaries^ 
notwithstanding, reached Madrid 30th May. But not only 
the ministers were found to be animated by bad faith, but 
the general on Terra Firma, (who succeeded Morillo) Gene- 
ral Miguel La Torre, demanded new reinforcements, as is 
proved by his correspondence with the minister of the Colo- 
nies in February and March, 1821. 

It was not long after the departure of the plenipotentiaries 
that the perfidy of the Spanish authorities was discovered by 
the government of Colombia ; but, willing to believe that 
the court of Madrid would not be influenced by the same 
passions as its agents, the discovery was permitted to re- 
main unnoticed, until it was found that nothing was to be 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 523 

hoped from Madrid ; and, in consequence, notice was given, 
and the hostilities were renewed, 28th April, 1821, Our 
minister then in Spain. Their first and last interview did 
not take place with Seiior Azara, Secretary of State, till the 
5th June, and was a mere dry uninteresting conversation. 
The plenipotentiaries soon saw that nothing was to be done. 
If any doubt could have remained, a Report from the minis- 
ter of the Colonies, Don Ramon Gil y Cuadra, to the Cortes, 
of 1st March, 1821, which treated of the Lazarettoes, 
Schools, the Secretary's department of Spanish America, and 
other silly details, as if their armies were triumphant, and 
the country in their complete subjection ; and a report of 
the committee of the Cortes, on 4th June, equally absurd, 
left no room for doubts. 

A meeting of deputies, on 24th June, affected to discuss 
the subject thoroughly, but the influence of the ministers 
prevented them, if really so disposed. A plan of regencies 
was agitated, which ministers secretly abetted. Messrs. 
Ravenga and Echeverria, immediately, in pursuit of their 
duty, transmitted to the minister a copy of the fundamental 
law. The ordinary Cortes were dissolved 30th June, when 
the monarch declared, " that the Spaniards of both hemis- 
pheres might be assured he would maintain the integrity of 
the monarchy in both hemispheres." 

Meantime, calumnious invectives were cast forth on the 
plenipotentiaries of the republic, who nevertheless remained 
in Madrid till the 1st September, on which day they received 
a note, dated 30th August, accusing the republic of the in- 
fraction of treaties ; their passports accompanied, intimating 
that they must not delay their departure.; and this was also 
announced in the public papers ; and a popular tumult ha- 
ving on the 20th August assailed General Morillo, then at 
Madrid, an attempt was made to implicate them in it. They 
therefore simply replied to the note, and left Madrid in thir- 
ty-six hours after receiving it, and having reached Bayonne 



524 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

on the 14th September, they replied by a statement of facts^ 
to the various allegations ; one of which referred to the revolt 
of the people of Maracaibo, during the armistice. The 
people there had risen against the oppression they experi- 
enced ; the military commandant, next adjacent, was called 
upon by the people, and consented to the act ; President 
Bolivar, upon hearing of this, ordered the arrest of the officer, 
(Colonel Heras) and submitted to the Spanish general a re- 
presentation, and proposed to let the merits of the question 
be arbitrated by the Spanish brigadier, Ramon Correa ; and 
in fact it appeared, that hostilities were not renewed until 
twenty-six days before the cessation of the armistice, when 
a contingency provided for by the 14th article of the treaty 
of truce, and the first law of nature, demanded it. 

Nothing but the same species of inane measures succeed- 
ed at Madrid. The Cortes, 13th February, 1822, requested 
the king to authorise persons to present themselves to the 
new governments in America ; on the 5th March a decree 
was issued, which the minister of the colonies received on 
the 31st, and the general of the Expeditionary Army 15th 
April, 1822, up to the 18th May following, did not re- 
ceive advice of the appointment of Jose Sartorio, and John 
Barry, to negociate with the Colombian government. Mean- 
while, in pursuance of the fourth article of the royal decree 
of 13th February, 1822, Ferdinand VII. addressed a mani- 
festo to the courts of Europe, declaring that Spain would 
consider as an infraction of treaties, the recognition of any 
of the American states. A copy of this document, authenti- 
cated by M. Clemencin, reached the government only after 
a long lapse of time; and the intendants of the maritime de- 
partments received instructions thereupon the 19th May; 
but no consequence followed. But on the 28th June, the 
Cortes authorised the king, to proceed on measures to recon- 
cile the colonies, and to conclude provisional agreements 
with the American governments, and that commerce should 
continue uninterruptedr But these measures did not deceive. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 525 

In September, and October last, the Spanish commander 
(Morales) at Maracaibo, issued two extraordinary decrees. 
By one he annulled the treaty concluded with Morillo, re- 
gulating the conduct of war upon the principles of civiliza- 
tion, indicating thereby a renewal of former outrages and 
massacres. By the other he condemns to confiscation, to 
hard labour on the public works, and to death, persons sub- 
jects of neutral powers, found in the provinces he may oc- 
cupy. It becomes the government to repel such actions 
with energy. By this conduct of the general, the declara- 
tions of the royal manifesto receive their true interpretation. 

Up to February and June 1822, the Spanish government 
has attributed the revolution to a capricious love of change, 
and not from a desire to be happy. America has, during thir- 
teen years of a war, commenced in the desire to shake off 
despotism, and to seek happiness in a free government, con- 
tinued in defence of existence, and threats of extermination ; 
America has succeeded, and Spain, after all the massacres she 
has committed, is compelled to drain the cup of bitterness 
to its dregs. She must endure her vicissitudes — Colombia 
is disposed to peace and concord with a people who speak 
the same language. 

In the United States, and in all Europe, excepting Spain, 
the government is satisfied with the neutrality they professed 
and maintained. Neither have the importunities of the mon- 
arch of Spain, at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle^ to engage 
them to assist in our resubjection, been successful. The 
executive has founded its foreign policy on three principles : 
1. Perpetual alliance and confederation among the powers 
engaged in the war. 2. Uniformity of conduct towards neu- 
trals. 3. The application of all the elements of offence 
and defence against the enemy, until compelled to seek 
peace. 



5S6 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

Heport of minister of interior — new order of things — publication of constitu- 
tion — the laws — executive — departmental administration— provinces — cantons 
■ — cabildos — notaries— rights of the aborigines — resguardas abolished — educa- 
tion of aborigines— police — public health — goitre-- vaccination— hospitals — 
poor-houses — naturalization — internal commerce — weights and measures — ■ 
roads — inland navigation— agriculture and arts — monies — public education — 
administration of justice — tribunals of commerce — liberty of the press — eccle- 
siastical affairs — bishops — regular clergy — suppressed convents — missions — 
clerical patriotism. 

The Report of Jose Manuel Restrepo, the Secretary of the 
Interior, or Home Department, scarcely admits of abridgment, 
and it presents so clear and comprehensive a view, of the inter- 
nal affairs of the Republic, that no individual enquiries could 
produce such a variety of important facts. He observes that 
little more than a year had elapsed since the constitution went 
into operation, and the charge of the organic laws devolved 
upon the executive; the executive had been assiduously en- 
gaged in fulfilling what the legislature intended, the prosperity 
of the people. Habits, usages, and customs, vvhich had be- 
come inveterate under the colonial state ; abuses grown into 
custom during thirteen years of disasters and war ; the very 
existence of war ; prejudices fostered from tender years, and, 
above all, the Gothic spirit and structure of Spanish legisla- 
tion, which has been overturned, but not obliterated, by the 
revolution, have interposed obstacles to the efforts of the 
executive. Many of those evils have, indeed, disappeared, 
or been modified to a milder character by measures of the ex- 
ecutive, but others await the prudent hand of the legislator, 
the operation of time, and the influence of liberty and inde- 
pendence, to remove them altogether. 

Charged by the duty of office, to report the progress made 
in the home department of the executive, the mode of ad- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 327 

ministration, the provisions and decrees, and the defects and 
impediments which have presented themselves in the pro- 
gress already made ; there shall be exhibited to congress 
what relates to the executive, the police, the means taken 
to promote public prosperity, the administration of justice, 
and ecclesiastical affairs; and such improvements in each 
branch as the executive would recommend. Congress will 
do concerning them what is consonant with justice, policy, 
and reason, so as to promote the happiness of the people, 
the sole end of government. 

Section I. Of the Government. — The publication of 
the constitution and laws was the first, and an agreeable 
duty. A decree of 20th September, year 11, (1821,) de- 
termined the manner and the oath to be administered to 
public functionaries : and within the two last months of 
1821, and the first of 1822, the constitution was received 
in all the departments and provinces, undisturbed by the pre- 
sence of the enemy, and sworn to by all persons in the pub- 
lic service, cabildos, and tribunals ; and their promulgation 
everywhere received with public rejoicings, and the appro- 
bation of the people. The municipal body of Caracas, 
however, alone thought fit to publish a protest against the 
oath, an act which the government found it to be its duty 
to censure, and submission followed. 

At the moment of promulgating the constitution, the pro- 
vinces of the important isthmus of Panama shook off the 
yoke of Spain, by a spontaneous act of the people, and vo- 
luntarily united themselves to the republic ; and the consti- 
tution and laws being sent to them as they desired, they 
were sworn to and promulgated with enthusiasm. The 
Spanish authorities in the isthmus entered into certain ca- 
pitulations with the people, which prevented the effusion of 
blood ; the executive has respected those laudable acts, and 
the documents will be laid before congress. 



5^8 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Quito has also given proofs of its attachment to the rc^ 
publican constitution ; and the arms of the repubUc, after 
many obstinate combats, have compelled the Spanish armies 
in that department to surrender. The provinces of Loja, 
Cuenca, and the once populous city of Quito, finding them- 
selves already free, spontaneously tendered their devotion to 
the constitution, which unites the ancient Viceroyalty of New 
Granada, and the Captain- Generalship of Venezuela, under 
the same national title of Colombia. Some difficulties had 
arisen at Guayaquil, owing to causes which were soon dis- 
sipated by the presence of Bolivar. The great majority of 
the people claimed to be united with Colombia, which being 
granted, all disturbance ceased, party disappeared, and se- 
curity and prosperity are established. 

The constitution has already reached the remote province 
of Maynas, on the borders of the Amazon in the south ; and 
thus one system of institutions and laws, protecting the li- 
berties and assuring the happiness of the people, pervade 
the beautiful regions from the mouths of the Orinoco to 
the northern boundaries of Brazil and Peru. Only two 
cities, and some small hamlets, now groan under the des- 
potic rule of the Spanish General Morales, who, it appeared 
from the foreign journals, was appointed Captain-General of 
Venezuela, and reinforced with 1500 men from Gallicia, 
convoyed by a naval force ; whose first enterprise against 
Maracaibo was successful, giving him the controul of the 
lake ; and enabled him to menace the departments of Car- 
thagena, Boyacca, Merida, Truxillo, and Venezuela. The 
power vested by article 128 of the constitution, in cases of 
invasion, was assumed on the 25th September; and mea- 
sures becoming necessary against internal foes, on the 30th 
September, a decree w^as issued against conspirators, in or- 
der to meet the measures of Morales, who never respected 
any laws ; this was necessary, as some persons in the depart- 
ment of Zulia had been seduced to raise the cry of insurrec» 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 529 

tioo, and two excellent officers were assassinated in the com- 
motion. Santa Martha was agitated by the same means. 
Some law regulating trials in such cases is necessary, as 
pointed at by the articles 169 and 170 of the constitution. 

Venezuela being the seat of war, the extraordinary autho- 
rity adapted to such occasions, was assumed in order to the 
recovery of Maracaibo ; a decree was issued 7th November 
last, in the departments of Cundinamarca, Boyacca, Magda- 
lena, Zulia, Venezuela, and Orinoco, as the points from 
which the enemy might derive supplies. In all other de- 
partments quiet and security prevails. The administration 
of every kind has proceeded with order and success. The 
elections of senators and representatives have been conducted 
wdth perfect order in the newly organized departments — and 
those acts of sovereignty, which in some nations most culti- 
vated produce tumults and dissentions, have been exercised 
among us in perfect quiet and concord, proving that the sa- 
crifices and heroism of thirteen years of war have not been 
unavailing, and that liberty is duly appreciated for its blessings. 

Publication of the Laws. Along with the constitution, all 
the laws and decrees of the first general congress (Cucuta, 
1821-2) have been promulgated, the government having 
caused them to be printed for circulation ; thus simplifying 
administration, and diffusing the excellent principles they 
contain, by placing them within the reach of every citizen. 

Executive Departments. Upon the first exercise of the 
executive authority, secretaries were appointed as its organs. 
Those of foreign relations, finance, and the home department^ 
single ; the war and naval under one head. A particular regu- 
lation has been provided for each department, prescribing its 
duties according to article 137 of the constitution. The law 
of 8th October, 1821, directed the appointments of a subor- 
dinate character and their salaries, but the numbers appointed 
are not yet sufficient for the dispatch of public business, 
which is for the consideration of Congress. 

67 



330 YISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Administration of Territorial Departments^ Provisional 
intendants, conformable to the organic law, have been ap- 
pointed to seven departments. Deputy assessors* have been 
also appointed according with the eleventh article of the law 
of 2d October, 1821. Secretaryships of districts have been 
appointed, and salaries assigned. The selection of secretaries 
being in the intendants, those departments are completed. 

The three new departments of the Isthmus, Quito, and 
Guayaquil are in progress. The isthmus consists of the pro= 
vinces of Panama and Veragua ; their population is smalL 
but the isthmus, from its position, must increase rapidly. 
That of Quito consists of the provinces of Quijos, Pastos, 
Cuenca, Loja, and Maynas. That of Guayaquil consists of 
its ancient territory. 

Obstacles and doubts arise on the law organizing departs 
ments. The intendants and governors being immediate 
agents of the executive, should not interfere with juridical 
concerns with which that law invests them, in every litigation 
concerning justice, police, or finance. It is the opinion of 
the executive these powers should be withdrawn from inten- 
dants and governors, and vested in deputy assessors ; powers 
would be thus better distributed, intendants not obliged to 
enter into affairs they may not understand, and be thus better 
enabled to bestow undivided attention on the improvement 
of the provinces over which they preside, and the military 
aifairs. An obstacle arises out of article 6, in the same law. 
Causes, in which heretofore an appeal lay to the king, on judi- 
cial affairs, are now carried to the executive, who having no law 
authorising him to interfere, provision is required to remedy 
the evil. It is also necessary that a code of regulations for 
the direction of intendants should be formed. That of New 
Spain of 1786, was directed by the law of 1821. But that 
code was formed for Mexico, and under an absolute mo- 

* The assessor is a law officer, whose functions are mixed ; he prosecutes fo:' 
offences, and acts as deputy to the intendant— at least so is the practise o 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. §31 

iiarch, and is utterly irreconcilable with the free institutions 
of Colombia. The executive, nevertheless, is overwhelmed 
with such appeals. The legislature is called upon to provide 
the remedy. In January, 1822, the executive appointed a 
commission to prepare a project of regulations, which will be 
laid before Congress. 

Political Adtninistration of the Provinces. — When the in- 
tendants were appointed, the government selected the pro- 
vincial governors in conformity with the constitution ; and 
deputy assessors for most of them. Margarita and Rio Hacha 
have none, because the stipend is not such as would induce 
advocates of suitable qualifications to accept them. The 
secretaryships of provinces have also been organised, and 
officers appointed, with their salaries, which w^ll be laid be- 
fore Congress, according to article 24 of law of 2d October. 

The eight provinces of Panama, Veragua, Pastos, Quito, 
Cuenca, Loja, Maynas, and Guayaquil, are added to the 
twenty-three of which the Republic was before composed 
when Congress made the distribution of the territory. Of 
these, Pastos, belonging to Quito, is now formed into a se- 
parate department by the liberator president, and the only one 
created by him. Salaries should be fixed for the governors 
of Veragua, Pastos, Cuenca, Loja, and Maynas. The others 
will probably be constituted heads of intendancies. 

Administration of the Cantons, To complete the division 
of the territory conformably with the articles thirty- three 
and thirty.four of the organic law of the departments, the pro- 
vinces are divided into cantons, reports having been pre- 
viously received from the governors. Political judges have 
also been appointed, thus completing the chain of social 
order. 

The political judges, however, having no salaries assigned 
them, they should be compensated : in some provinces a 
small sum from the funds of the municipal bodies has been 
allowed them ; but these funds are much impaired, and many 



532 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

cantons are without any funds ; there remained no resource 
but the national funds, which have been so applied in the 
province of Orinoco ; a heavy charge to the public, in the 
actual state of things, as the number exceeds two hundred : 
it rests with Congress to correct the inconvenience* 

Cabildos of Cantons, — The first general congress, in pre° 
serving the ancient cabildos, pointed out their functions. 
But the war absorbed all other considerations j and few cor- 
porations have been able to engage in works of utility. That 
of St, Gil, in the province of Socorro, has distinguished itself 
in tlie promotion of schools, in which are taught grammar 
and philosophy. 

The thirty -fourth article authorised the establishment of 
new corporations, and accordingly the municipalities of To- 
cayma and La Mesa, in the province of Marequita, and that 
of Yoisa in Panama, have been created ; but cabildos have 
been erected also, as new cantons are created. 

The condition of our population scattered on the plains, 
for the most part renders the sitting of corporations difficult. 
The cabildos have been re-elected in October last, agreeably 
to the forty-second article, but for uniformity it is determined 
that the period must commence from January. The bounds 
of some corporations have been changed, and even of pro- 
vinces. In Bogota and Marequita,''provinces, certain villages, 
and the same with parishes, have been transferred to a juris- 
diction more contiguous : particulars will be presented to 
Congress. 

Public Notaries of Cantons. — The places of notaries and 
registers of mortgages in cantons were saleable offices and 
transferable under the Spanish rule.* The first general con- 
gress, article seventy-six, of the law concerning tribunals, de- 
termined that the sales should cease, and the places be filled 
by competition, and the candidates undergo an examination 
by the local courts as to fitness. A special law is necessary 

* Great abuses in the office of notary. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 533 

on the subject. Those who purchased, claim indemnity ; but 
this being a question of law, the executive could not interfere. 

Slavery. — The law of 19th July, year 11, gave liberty to 
the children of female slaves, abolished the trade in ne- 
groes, and the boards of manumission have been in activity 
throughout the republic. In December of the same year, the 
period fixed for the liberation of slaves by purchase, it was 
carried into effect, and the legislature of Colombia received 
the blessings of thousands restored to the condition of men. 
In some provinces, fears were entertained that the cessation of 
slavery would affect agriculture and the working of the mines. 
It may so happen, but is it not a less evil than that the people 
should live as if over a volcano, of which no one could anti- 
cipate the moment of explosion ? It is better that agriculture 
and mining should incur those temporary evils, for which 
want and experience will every day discover more safe and 
permanent remedies, than entail on posterity so great a moral 
and physical evil. 

Rights of the Aborigines, The greater part of the Indians 
of Colombia have been a degraded class, and are yet par-= 
tially so. The Spanish laws reduced them to perpetual pu- 
pilage, and it may be said, without fear of contradiction, that 
they were the slaves of the priests and the magistrates. Both 
one and the other commanded them to be whipped publicly 
for the most trivial faults, and even though in years. Thus 
they lived in a state of debasement and degradation, the 
energy of their intellectual and physical faculties destroyed. 
Obliged to cultivate lands in common, they never improved 
them, and mournfully vegetated in villages, existing in misery, 
and with difficulty able to pay the sum of from six to nine 
dollars a year exacted from them as tribute, which all males 
from 1 8 to 50 were obliged to pay ! 

The first general Congress annihilated these cruel oppres- 
sions, by placing the natives on an equality with all other 
men ; suppressed the tributes and personal labour wrong- 
fully exacted, and provided tliat the resguardas^ or common 



534 l^ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

lands, should be laid out and conferred on them as fee sim- 
ple estates within five years. These measures, though they 
will render them more happy, cannot exalt them to that state 
which education only can establish ; their posterity, and the 
youth growing up, will profit by them, and care has been 
taken that the children find their admission in primary schools, 
where they learn to read and write, and where the brutal 
practice of whipping is utterly forbidden. 

By a decree of 14th March last, four Indian youths are jto 
be admitted into each of the colleges of Bogota, CaracaSj 
and Quito, and two in each of every other ; and funds have 
been assigned for their maintenance. Thus by degrees they 
will become like other men, under the influence of liberty 
and republican institutions. 

Within fifty or sixty years difference of casts and condi- 
tions of inferiority will wholly disappear. 

Section II. Of the Police — Public Security. During 
the fifteen months since the legislature commenced its sit- 
tings, public order has been well observed, and, notwith- 
standing the marauding of tlie Spaniards from Porto Cabello 
on Venezuela, the population has no where indicated any 
thing in their favour, A banditti of the partisans of Spain, 
(Cisneros) a robber, has maintained a place in the forests 
near Caracas, and another near Calaboso has been totally 
destroyed. Another party kept the vast deserts of Castigo, 
after the pacification of the south, but trifling in number. 
The Spanish Lieutenant-colonel Benito Boves, formed a 
band of outlaws in Pastes, and excited commotions in that 
town, and, though treated with generosity by the republican 
troops, sought to spread civil war and desolation anew. The 
liberator soon terminated his career, and, on the 24th De- 
cember last, annihilated him and his banditti, since which 
time tranquilUty has every where prevailed. 

About the same time Santa Martha was disturbed. Some 
deserters having joined the Indians of the district of Cienega, 
raised an insurrection, and the republican troops being em- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 535 

ployed on other duties, and absent, the insurgents occupied 
that place. They soon met the same fate as those of Pastos. 

As necessary to tranquillity, the moderation of the repub- 
lic having been abused, the executive, by a circular of 28th 
June, forbad those who had emigrated from returning before 
the cabinet of Madrid should have recognised Colombian 
Independence. It is to be regretted that this measure had 
not been taken the preceding year, and that it did not extend 
to the expulsion of those, who, living in the midst of us, and 
f njoying the security they would themselves deny and de- 
stroy to us, are probably watching for a favourable oppor- 
tunity to plant a dagger in the bosom of the republic whose 
protection they enjoy. 

Health. Measures should be pursued to repress the annual 
visits of yellow fever to the seaports ; the establishment 
of boards of health — quarantines — lazarettoes — draining of 
stagnant waters. 

Leprosy. The disease called St, Lazaro^ or Elephantia- 
sis (leprosy), has spread in some parts of Colombia. The 
Spanish government established an hospital in Carthagena for 
the reception of the unhappy people, afflicted with this dis- 
ease ; but the Spanish general. Morales, distinguished by fe- 
rocity, in 1815, took the horrid pleasure of settings fire to it, 
and consuming more that 500 unfortunate persons within its 
walls. Others, who had not taken refuge there, escaped, and 
spread themselves and the disease, in different parts of the 
surrounding country. The hospital ^vas re-established, 
but the funds were not available. Since the city has been 
.occupied by the republic, it has been sustained by charity. 

The province of Soccoro has many persons afflicted with 
this disease, and a lazaretto was established in 1820, at a 
place called Coro, where the afflicted of Soccoro, Pamplona, 
Tunja, Casanare, Bogota, Neyva, and Marequita are provi- 
ded for. The revenues are inadequate. The providence 
of the legislator is called upon to use the means employed 



536 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ill almost every part of the globe, where it has existed, 
has been extirpated. 

Goitre, Another disease, which, though not mortal, de- 
forms a considerable portion of the population, in several 
provinces, destroys the beauty of the fair sex, enfeebles the 
senses, and affects the mental faculties ; it makes infancy 
feeble, and frequently idiots. It prevails principally in the 
temperate valleys ; although the inhabitants of the frozen 
summits of mountains are not exempted, any more than the 
torrid plains of the Magdalena, Meta, and Apure, and other 
rivers. The goitre, according to concurring observations, 
rather augments than diminishes, and demands the interpo- 
sition of the legislative body. Funds should be appropriated 
for experiments, under skilful medical men. The learned 
of all countries should be invoked for aid, and liberal re« 
wards offered for the discovery of effective means of preven- 
tion and cure. 

Vaccination, The government has taken care to have this 
precious discovery disseminated, with the vaccine matter, 
throughout the provinces. 

Hospitals, The greater part of the civil hospitals are un- 
der the direction of the regular clergy of San Juan de Dios, 
The funds are bequests of private persons. War has di- 
minished the income. The hospitals require a better regu- 
lation. 

Cemeteries, The government has promoted the establish- 
ment of cemeteries in every parish, with views to public 
health. The interment of the dead in churches, is an abuse, 
and must be discontinued. 

Poor-houses. In Bogota, Quito, and Caracas, buildings are 
assigned to receive the mendicant poor, and employ them 
in some useful industry. The government has also found- 
ed another at Pamplona. It is true, that some of the econo- 
mists are opposed to this species of institution, but there are 
arguments against them, more deserving the regard of a go- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 537 

vernment, in which the people have equal rights, and the 
opulent are protected by those who are not rich. But in cast- 
ing a glance over the republic, it is a great pleasure to per- 
ceive, that no where within its jurisdiction, is there so maiiy 
poor, nor poverty so miserable as in ancient nations, consi- 
dered as having reached the summit of grandeur. No where 
in Colombia do the poor perish through want, notwithstand- 
ing a war which for its duration has been the most cruel and 
disastrous recorded in history. Indeed, the fertility of our 
temperate climate affords such abundance of the necessaries 
of life, account for this, and is a happy presage for the 
future. 

Section III. Of Naturalization^ — The great designs 
of the first general Congress, in sanctioning the 183d article of 
the constitution, and the law of 3d September, 1821, begin 
to operate. Many foreigners have applied for naturalization 
up to the close of the last year ; there were only fourteen na- 
turalizations, many more had solicited, but doubts had inter- 
posed as to the law. The government is satisfied there was 
nothing retrospective, and that those who resided in 1821 
are not subject to the fourth article. Congress arc called 
upon to ratify this interpretation. 

Another difficulty arose out of section two, of article four 
of the constitution. As the republic has undergone many 
political changes in organising departments and provinces, 
the government could not decide whether it speaks of a law 
common to all, or commences at the termination of the Span- 
ish yoke in each place. Colombia requires that the utmost 
encouragement be given to the naturalization of foreigners, 
especially those who bring with them capital or useful arts, 
of which the republic stands in need. Naturalization should, 
therefore, be rendered easy. 

Internal Commerce. — The relief of internal industry from 
the oppression of the alcavalas has given great activity to 

68 



538 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

internal trade ; and the entire expulsion of the enemy must 
be followed by still greater augmentation. 

The observance of the Spanish laws was provisionally en- 
joined^ and it was unavoidable ; but wherever inconsistent 
with our free institutions, and the entrance of foreigners un- 
acquainted with them, produces great inconvenience. The 
laws thus in force rendered it out of the power of the execu- 
tive to dispense with those which obliged foreigners to con- 
sign their merchandise to native agents, as was the law under 
Spain. The provisional decree, issued 27th February, 1822, 
on this subject, will be laid before Congress. A clear intel- 
ligible law is required, placing strangers on the same terms 
as we are placed in foreign nations. The decree has prevented 
disputes, and encourages national prosperity. 

Weights and Measures. The executive has experienced 
some difficulty in the construction of standards of weights 
and measures, as decreed by the first general Congress, to be 
sent to the departments ; particularly as to the measures of 
capacity called almudes, the cube-root of which was surd, 
and not satisfactorily reducible to the precision of mathema- 
tics. It would have been more advantageous to reform the 
law of 11th December, 1821, and adopt the metrical system 
of France: their metre is scarcely two-tenths longer than the 
Spanish yard, and could be introduced with facility. 

Difficulties arose as to who should be the depositaries 
charged with the custody of the measures called almacenes. 
Some corporations continued to exact the ancient duties, 
which was put an end to as soon as known ; Congress will 
be applied to further on this subject. 

Roads.' — Colombia, divided by lofty ranges of the Andes 
and their magnificent limbs, almost all roads lead through 
mountainous regions, and oppose difficulties to opening and 
repairing them. There is not a single road for wheel car- 
riages in the vast territory of the republic. All are bridle 
roads, and bad at all times, but particularly in the rainy sea» 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 539 

son. The government is aware that without good roads in- 
dustry, particularly agriculture, cannot be prosperous ; but 
peace will enable the government to attend to this great bu- 
siness of public providence. 

Nevertheless the liberator, our president, has caused a road 
to be opened from Quito to Esmeraldas on the Pacific, and 
granted some immunities to promote the increase of com- 
merce there. A road has been made in Antioquia from 
Medelin to the river Nare, the inhabitants having generously 
borne the expenses by voluntary subscription. Some useful 
bridges have been finished ; one over the river St. Gil has been 
constructed by the patriotic exertions of the municipality of 
St. Gil. That at Capitanejo, over the Chichamoca, has been 
completed outof the public funds; tolls have been suggested 
as a fund to construct and keep bridges in repair ; but this 
being the province of the legislature, no steps have been taken. 
In two cases of bridges, however, the same toll is paid that 
was demanded for crossing in a canoe before. 

The subject of roads demands the most serious considera- 
tion. Colombia wants roads. We should follow the exam- 
ple of the United States, where roads have been constructed 
at the most extraordinary expense, over which carriages tra- 
vel with perfect convenience in one day, distances which 
occupied four days or a week before. 

Inland navigation. — Colombia possesses in great rivers an 
immense inland navigation. The majestic Orinoco and its 
countless tributaries ; the Catabamba, Zulia, and others that 
unite in the beautiful lake of Maracaibo ; the Magdalena ; the 
Atrato, Cruces, and numerous others on the Pacific side ; the 
Patia, Esmeraldas, Santiago, St. Juan, and the Guayaquil, 
But the navigation is still rude. Champans and Bogas ascend 
those streams in the same manner, and navigated by Indians 
in the same way, as at the conquest, after the dominion of 
three centuries ; so little have the Spaniards taught us in that 
long period. Thus the navigation from the mouth of the 
Orinoco to the head of the Meta, within three days' journey 



540 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of Bogota, is an enterprise requiring more time than is ne- 
cessary to double Cape Horn from Europe. For this reason, 
the expenses of transport are so enormous, that few articles 
will bear the charge of carrying from our ports to an interior 
market. It is impossible that internal agriculture, industry, 
or commerce, can prosper until changes are made to facilitate 
communication and transport, not merely of foreign goods 
we require, but of our own products, upon which public 
prosperity so much depends. 

With steamboats many of our rivers may be navigated at 
less than oncrfourth of the present cost. Different individuals 
have proposed to establish steamboats on the Magdalena, upon 
condition of an exclusive privilege. This being the province 
of Congress to act upon, the executive declined to make any 
such grant. Until steamboats do enter, it would be impor« 
tant that Congress should pass a law regulating the bogus 
(meaning the boatmen, the boat or canoe is also called boga). 

Canals. — The opening of an important canal between the 
San Pablo in Choco and the Atrato, which fall into the Ca- 
ribbean sea, with the St. Juan, which falls into the Pacific, 
A foreigner has proposed to open it for an exclusive privi- 
lege, and calculates the expense at only ^200,000, though 
some think erroneously: it will be laid before Congress; 
but the moment does not appear favourable. 

Agriculture and Arts-r-have received very little encourage- 
ment : the war contributions, the recruiting of the army, 
want of funds, are the causes. Peace will afford more means. 
The establishment of central schools of agriculture at Quito, 
Bogota, and Caracas, might diffuse information all around, 
on subjects so interesting, but of which the paternal care of 
Spain has left the people of Colombia almost ignorant. 

Mines. — Mining in Antioquia, Choco, Popayan, and parts 
of Neyva and Pamplona, is pursued at the washings, and in 
the two first provinces the product has been considerable. 
The war has affected all the other provinces. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 541 

Section IV. Public Education. — Primary schools were 
directed to be established in every parish, by the law of 2d 
August, 1821, and it has been carried into effect wherever 
practicable. The want of teachers and of elementary books, 
are serious difficulties ; and show how the colonial system has 
generated ignorance. Model schools were directed to be 
formed in principal places ; some teachers have proceeded to 
different places ; and in January, 1822, a regulation was is- 
sued prescribing the order in which mutual instruction should 
be conducted and extended. The system has been received 
with pleasure, and the people now perceive that they have a 
government of their own, even where the distance from the 
capital is 2000 leagues. For three hundred years the Span- 
iards did not endow a single school. A commission has 
been formed to make enquiries, and to prepare a report on 
the Lancasterian school system, which will be laid before 
Congress ; the schools yet have languished through want of 
funds, and those directed to be established in convents of 
nuns particularly. 

Colleges — according to the law of 28th July, 1821, are to be 
founded in every province of Colombia ; already the colleges 
of Boyacca in Tunja ; San Simon in Ibague ; Antioquia in 
Medelin ; and the academy of San Gil are established ; and 
another is to be placed at Caly in Popayan. The Liberator 
has also founded a college in Loja. The ancient colleges 
have been encouraged as far as possible ; two at Quito, one 
in Popayan, two in Bogota, two in Caracas, and one in Merida 
exist. That in Bogota is flourishing. The government has 
not yet been able to collect the data requisite for the reform 
of those ancient colleges, which they require, being all Gothic 
in their foundations and forms. 

The study of medicine and surgery is essential ; more va- 
liant soldiers perished in the field through that want than by 
any other cause. Two foreigners have presented themselves 
with complete apparatus for teaching anatomy, and propose 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Commencing a course of lectures j they have been accepted} 
and they have commenced in this capital. 

Universities. There are at Quito, Bogota, Caracas, and at 
Merida, for some of the sciences ; that of Bogota, is un- 
der the direction of the Dominican order. They all require 
reform. 

The government has added to the ancient library of Bo- 
gota, that of the celebrated Dr. Matis, and the books which 
have been sequestrated. The books are placed in the halls of 
St. Bartholemew, and the former building has been sold for 
the advantage of the library. 

Section V. High court of justice. This court was in- 
stalled immediately on the establishment of the constitution* 
Two of the officers named for that court, have declined pro- 
visionally ; it remains with congress to provide. 

Superior courts of districts. Those courts of the centre, 
and north, were installed at the same time, but not in Quito, 
as the war had not yet ceased its effects ; but as soon as it 
was free, the courts were established ; no provision existing 
for Panama, they have been therefore united with the courts 
of the central departments. In the organic law, the fiscal 
agents were not noticed. The executive, therefore, consider- 
ed them as suppressed. 

Inferior courts. These are in full exercise of their duties. 
The only doubt which has arisen, is whether the officers of 
the fraternity admitted by Spanish law, ought to subsist. 
But as there are two alcaldes in each canton, ^t fraternity is 
considered as suppressed. 

Tribunals of commerce. They were suppressed by the law 
of October, and transactions before submitted to them, were 
referred to the ordinary tribunals. 

The liberty of the press. The law relating to it, has been 
fulfilled ; the operations of the government are freely anim- 
adverted upon, and the great interests of the nation dis- 
cussed. Newspapers are increasing, but it is to be regret- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 54S 

ted, that the printing establishments are very limited, and 
not as numerous as is desirable. Some excesses have oc- 
curred, and they appear unavoidable where the press is free. 
The law of the press has introduced trial by jury ; in prac- 
tice, Art. 48. appeared defective, two votes of the same 
opinion being sufficient for an acquittal, and six for con- 
demnation. Perhaps in such cases, an even majority should 
condemn or acquit. In case this idea should not be acceded 
to, the rule of English juries, that of unanimity, should be es- 
tablished, and then the institution would be complete. 

Administration of Justice. Nothing can be more imper- 
fect than the existing jurisprudence of Colombia ; it is 
a gothic edifice, half in ruins, heterogeneous and discor- 
dant. The laws of the Partidas made in the time of the 
Moors ; the Recopilacion Castellana ; and Autos Acorda- 
dos ; the laws of the Indies ; the ordinances of Bilboa, and 
the Intendants ; the contradictory decrees of the arbitrary 
monarchs of Spain ; the Republican constitution, and the 
laws of the first general Congress — these are the Codes 
which rule Colombia ; a vast chaos, the last almost entirely 
abolishing all the rest. Here civil causes are continued for 
years, and the ruin of families follows ; no greater misfortune 
could befal a good citizen, than to be involved in a litigation. 

The civil and criminal code, therefore, call for the cor- 
rection of Congress, so that justice may be speedy, easy, and 
certain ; without which our liberties must cease, that pre- 
cious possession acquired by the blood and the sacrifices of 
the people for thirteen years of war. The government 
had formed a commission in January, 1822, with a view to 
lay the basis of a code. 

Section VI. Ecclesiastical affairs. The superior hier- 
archy of Colombia commences with the archbishops, of 
which there are two, Bogota and Caracas. Bogota is va- 
cant. The incumbent of Caracas was sent to Europe by 
Morillo, and has been since appointed to a see in Spain. 



544 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Documents relative to this prelate will be laid before Coo» 
gress in order to a decision upon the revenues of tha:t see. 

The bishoprics of Quito, Cuenca, Maynas, and Panama, 
under Spanish rule, were suffragans of the archbishopric of 
Lima ; the appeals from acts of the bishops, &c. would of 
course be decided by the metropolitan, Colombia and Pe- 
ru are now separate and independent states ; and cases are 
now brought before authority within the Republic, and it 
is contemplated to constitute by law, Quito into an arch- 
bishopric ; a respect due to that populous and patriotic city. 

Bishops* There arc ten in Colombia : Quito, Cuenca, May- 
nas, Popayan, Panama, Carthagena, Santa Marta, Merida, 
Antioquia, Guayana, of which Maynas, Cuenca, Santa Marta, 
Antioquia, and Guayana are vacant. The bishops of Cartha- 
gena and Quito are alive, but being avowed enemies of inde- 
pendence, have abandoned their diocesses and gone to Spain. 
The bishop of Popayan, Salvator Ximenes, has rendered 
meritorious service, particularly in the capitulation of Berru- 
ecos, which put an end to the war in the south ; he declares 
himself a Colombian, and is restored. 

The difficulty with respect to bishops of Colombia being 
suffragans of Lima, occurred in the opposite relation, in va- 
rious districts of the province of Loja, and the territory of 
St. Jean de Brocamoros, which, though belonging to Co- 
lombia, were subject to the Peruvian bishop of Truxillo. 
Insubordination of this kind must not be permitted in future. 
Vacancies* Parishes, canonries, bishoprics, and archbish- 
oprics are vacant. The parishes have been ordered to be 
filled up, by a decree of 4th January, 1822, and the ordina- 
ries have every where fulfilled their duty, notwithstanding 
some qualms of the prudent vicar- general of Carthagena. 
The government by this decree has endeavoured to preserve 
unhurt the rights that belong to the civil power, and those 
necessary to maintain the civil subordination of the clergy, 
conformably with the resolution of Congress, of 14th Octo- 
ber, 1821. Thus no person can obtain an ecclesiastical 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 545 

benefice without a previous license from the executive of 
the republic or its authority. 

The vacancies in chapters have been filled up so far as is 
necessary to divine service in the cathedrals. The arch- 
bishoprics and bishoprics will remain vacant until the nego- 
ciation of the concordat at Rome is terminated. Expe- 
rience has proved that it is necessary to the tranquillity and 
good government of the republic, that the right of patro- 
nage should be in the executive, in the same way as exer- 
cised by the king of Spain. During the war this right has 
not been enforced, but the government will for ever main- 
tain it. 

Regular Clergy. The regular orders in Colombia are di- 
vided into three provinces, Venezuela, Bogota, and Quito; 
some others are independent. The head or common centre 
of those regulars was the vicar-general of each, resident at 
Madrid, who was subordinate to a generalissimo residing at 
Rome. The vicar-generals issued orders to their provinces, 
which were obeyed by the provincials or superiors. But 
since Colombia is independent, it is necessary the regular 
orders should be so too. No subordination to, nor commu- 
nications with, superiors residing in a hostile state, like Spain, 
can be, on any account, allowed. Congress will therefore 
have to determine, by law, the regular clergy independent of 
all foreign interference. 

Suppressed Convents. Such convents of regulars as had 
not at least eight priests, were directed to be suppressed, by 
the first general Congress, and their edifices, properties, and 
revenues appropriated to the support of public education. 
This has been fulfilled in all the provinces exempted from 
war in the last year. As far as information has yet been re- 
ceived, thirty-nine convents have been so suppressed, and 
converted into seminaries of education. Doubts and con- 
siderations concerning some others, have induced government 
to let them exist, subject to the pleasure of Congress. 

69 



546 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The government entertaining doubts as to the intention of 
the law ot 28th July, 1821, which authorised those measures 
concerning the ornaments and sacred vessels of the churches, 
suggest the propriety of distributing them in the poor parish 
churches, where they cannot be applied to the uses of the 
colleges. 

Missions. Various uncivilized tribes dwell as well in La 
Goajira, as on the banks of the Meta, Orinoco, and Amazon, 
and other rivers that water the vast plains of the eastern part of 
the republic ; some of them have received ideas of religion, 
and they open a fine field for the regular clergy. 

Patriotism of the Clergy. They have every where, secu- 
lar and regular, rendered important services to the cause of 
independence. One or two fanatics only, sought to preach 
and effect a coalition between religion and despotism. But 
they have disappointed themselves : some individuals have 
much distinguished themselves, and the government would 
exercise the right of patronage in the favour of such men, 
if the state of ecclesiastical relations would admit. 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

Financial report — incohate state of the revenue system — effect of suppress 
sions — fiscal year to begin with July — customs — tithes — tobacco — spirits — 
mint — post-office — salt-works — stamps — alcavala — direct taxation. 

Beport of the war department — state of the army as to discipline during the 
war — the zeal of the chiefs supplied the absence of system — strength of the 

army — organization — guard — administrative branches clothing and pay — 

arms — militia fortresses — artillery — quarters — arsenals — invalids — military 

instruction — operations of the army — campaigns in Peru. 

Naval report — commodore Brion — naval depots — naval expenditures. 

The report of the Minister of Finance, Jose Maria Cas- 
tillo, was not presented till the 5th of May. The introduction, 
amounting to about a third of the report, is rhetorical ; ac- 
counting for what has not been done, by showing how much 
was to be done, and how much too short the space since the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 547 

establishment of the constitution was, to carry into execution 
so many new measures as had been required by the first Ge- 
neral Congress. It would be desirable to give it at large, but 
its bulk does not admit of it ; the ideas of a fiscal kind are 
such as have been prevalent in Europe for the last half cen- 
tury, or what in common discourse is called political econo- 
my ; in which the fancies of Rousseau, the illusions of the 
French economists, or school of Quesnay, and the perplexity 
and contradictions of the English school of Smith, and of Say, 
who may be called the Economistics, are the sources of scien- 
tific absurdity. A few sentiments and maxims may be 
quoted, as they afford matter to appreciate the state of the 
financial administration, and the ideas that prevail on ihe 
subject in the new republic. He says — " The adniinibtra- 
tion of the national finances are the most essential, because 
with revenues every thing may be done, and without them 
nothing : upon them depends the ease or oppression of the 
people ; the fortunate or unfortunate termination of under- 
takings ; the greatness or ruin of nations : the execution 
of new laws on this branch of government is the most diffi- 
cult and tedious work that can present itself to a government. 
Theoretical principles direct the legislator, the executive 
should put the deductions from these principles in opera- 
tion ; but he has to struggle against inveterate habits of the 
multitude, the prejudices of a great majority, the interests of 
considerable number, the partialities, caprices, sloth, want 
of zeal, or want of understanding. The difficulties become 
frightful when to these are added the impediments of a pro- 
tracted war, which has impoverished the country, diminish- 
ed its population, drained off its capital, reduced to inaction 
the citizens underarms ; the increased expenditure of war," 
&c. " With all these impediments it was impossible in 
eighteen months to give full effect to the laws. The consti- 
tuent congress fixed its eyes on the only end of government 



54S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

— the happiness of the people, holding in view the enlight- 
ened principle^ that every tax is an evil! ! ! ££?^." Such was 
the design when congress passed the decree relieving the 
productions for food and the arts from the alcahala ; the re- 
duction of that tax to two and a half per cent, on foreign 
productions and real property ; the extinction of the dread- 
ful monopoly of spirits ; the abolition of the oppressive tri- 
bute paid by the aborigines, the imposition of which was 
the greatest crime of the Spaniards, because it was an attempt, 
and a successful one, to oppose the magnificent works of 
nature, by impoverishing a country the richest of the earth, 
and where the Almighty had poured forth blessings in pro- 
fusion. It would have been criminal to continue them. 
This people are now relieved, who had been sunk in misery 
and degradation. Colombians are no longer watched by 
the Sdirri, who collected the alcabala; nothing is now to ar- 
rest the fruits of labour in its progress towards a market ; 
those legions of custom-house officers, supported on the 
impoverishment of industry, have disappeared, who plun- 
dered the poor and were the instruments of the frauds of 
opulence, and that multitude of administrators who absorbed 
four-fifths of what they received from the payers of taxes. 
The people do not suffer the grief now of seeing one-tenth 
of what was wrung from them enter the public coffers, and 
the other nine-tenths enrich the tax-gatherers : they may 
now cultivate sugar-cane without being limited to a small 
quantity, or consuming by fire what they may have cultiva- 
ted beyond the space prescribed. 

The suppression of imposts left a void, which was felt the 
more because expenses were increasing in proportion as the 
territory became free, and the fortresses, armies, and fleets 
augmented. A new system became necessary, founded on 
congenial laws. The departments were organized, and the 
system of controul established, under the law of 6th Octo- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 549 

ber, 1821. The administration of the departments, pro- 
vinces, chief towns of cantons, custom-houses, mints, fac- 
tories of tobacco, &c. were organized. It could not be ex- 
pected that all could be perfected at once ; experience has 
discovered defects ; congress will be called on to provide 
remedies in a manner consistent with our institutions. The 
statements required from the distant points, requisite to fur- 
nish congress with authentic information, have been but par- 
tially received ; even from Venezuela few returns have been 
received, less from Guayaquil and Quito, and fewer still 
from Panama. The incidents of war and a total change of 
circumstances, account for these impediments ; and the fiscal 
year closing with the beginning of January, distance retards 
the collection of the data from remote stations. It is pro- 
posed to fix the fiscal year from the first of July. 

Notwithstanding, posterity will be astonished at what has 
been accomplished — while numerous armies, always in ac- 
tivity, were engaged in Venezuela, Zulia, Magdalena, Boy- 
acca, Cuenca, Quito, and Guayaquil ; garrisons in the for- 
tresses, a force in the isthmus, a naval force created, em- 
ployed, and always in activity, and the general administra- 
tion well supported. Such is the spectacle Colombia pre- 
sents, with a very limited revenue, and very small loans, the 
only ordinary resource that was available. It may hereafter 
seem fabulous that a powerful enemy has been defeated, and 
this great republic constituted, with nothing to rely on but 
an ordinary revenue not exceeding five millions of dollars,, 
and loans not exceeding a million. The world will admire 
the economy of this republic, but the savings made by sa- 
crifices have a limit ; other means must be provided by the 
wisdom of congress. The history of our financial laws 
will impress the necessity. 

Customs. The laws concerning customs have been strict- 
ly executed, and the reduction of the impost has been found 



550 VISIT TO COLOMBIA* 

salutary. The law which imposes a duty on exports is an 
obstacle to public prosperity, and 1 can aver it diminishes 
the impost duties ; it has been executed every where, with 
the exception of a temporary exemption of coffee, to meet an 
exigency in Venezuela, to provide resources for the army, 
at a critical moment. In another memoir, I will lay before 
Congress my ideas on the justice and necessity of freeing 
all productions of the country from every export duty, in- 
cluding coined gold ; and that it will not be necessary to con- 
tinue that monstrous duty upon presumed export, invented 
by the distrustful rapacity of Spain. The law endeavoured 
to triumph over the bad faith of traders, and that the duty 
on imported merchandize should be collected upon the sum 
it was presumed would be taken out of the country. But 
unreasonable exaction produced retaliating fraud — False po- 
licy, with bad faith, contended against interests more powerful 
than law, not sanctioned by reason or justice. Money was 
withdrawn clandestinely, and merchandize were smuggled 
in. By this mistaken policy, duties on import and export 
were lost. The laws that regulate the tariffs still partake too 
nmch of the Spanish errors. The duties on tonnage re- 
quire modification, so that our own tonnage may be en- 
couraged. 

Tithes. This is a most important aid to the public trea- 
sury. By this fund, the support of the ministers of religion 
is secured, and the nation participates in the product. It is 
necessary, however, to equalize them in direction, collection, 
administration, and distribution, taking as models the forms 
of the archiepiscopal administration, by which will be realized 
the paradox of an increase of revenue, without oppression 
but rather ease to the people. 

Tobacco. The law of 27th September directed the con- 
tinuance of the monopoly of tobacco. Impulse has been 
accordingly given to new factories, and new ones establish- 
ed at St. Gil, and in Casinare. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 551 

Spirits. The law of 4th October, abohshed the monopoly 
of spirits, the salutary effects of which are not yet sufficient- 
ly known. The entire prohibition of foreign spirits is ne- 
cessary. 

The Mint. The two mints existing (in Bogota and Popa- 
yan) have been destitute of resources. That of Popayan has 
been, some time past, effectively employed. The occupa- 
tion of this capital by the enemy, and their ferocious ani- 
mosity, not content with letting the mint stand unproduc- 
tive, they plundered and destroyed the machinery. Both 
mints are, however, constructed upon the Gothic plan of 
past ages, and require to be replaced by more perfect, mo- 
dern engines, and improved implements. 

During the year, the coining of gold money, with the in- 
signia of the republic, has commenced, according to the law 
of 29th September. Opposition has been attempted to the 
new coinage, the effect of disaffection to the government, 
operating upon ignorance ; but the new doubloons, of the 
same intrinsic purity and weight as the best coin of former 
times, have been exported, and make their way by their own 
value into circulation, where Spanish gold formerly was 
carried. 

The working of platina has been unsuccessful, from the 
want of the requisite skill, of acids, and the necessary appa- 
ratus. The object will not be neglected. 

Copper money has also suffered impediments. A great 
quantity was collected in the capital, and more ordered, but 
the mechanics threw obstacles in the way, on the score of 
expense, and it was suspended. The utility of a copper coin 
is unquestionable, the facility it affords in the exchange for 
small articles is obvious. The quartillos and fialf quartillos 
of the real^ are in some places a good silver coin, in others 
imaginary, and there are no districts more needy than those 
where they are unknown as a silver coin. It has not been 
practicable to prosecute the silver coinage, on account of the 



55S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

loss that must be incurred. It is therefore postponed to a pe» 
riod of more prosperity. 

Fost- Office. The post has for it natural object facility of 
communication and correspondence, and is indispensable to 
public prosperity ; its object is not by its own produce to be- 
come a matter of revenue, but if there be a surplus over its 
expenses, it appertains to the public treasury. The govern- 
ment has endeavoured to give it more simplicity, but experi- 
ence proves that it requires a total amelioration : a weekly 
post should arrive and depart from this capital for each of the 
three grand territorial divisions, and the charges should be 
in the ratio of the average weight and distance, making al- 
lowance between land and water carriage ; good roads and 
navigation inland, are inseparable from this branch of public 
economy. 

Salt' Works. The management and administration of the 
salt-vv'orks are matters of much obscurity. Nothing has yet 
appeared in the financial department in relation to them. 
The government has directed information to be provided in 
the most circumstantial form ; in the mean time the rich salt 
mine of Zipaquira requires attention. An improvement in 
the economy and method of management would afford a pro- 
digious return. The method now pursued, the furnaces 
and boilers, and manipulation generally, are all rude and 
wasteful as they are imperfect ; and fifty thousand dollars, 
judiciously employed, might double the product. Pure salt 
is conducive to public health. 

Stamps, The law of 6th October made an alteration in 
the system of stamps, by increasing the price of some and 
sub -dividing them into classes, and suppressing others. 
Judgments were directed to be engrossed on the same pa- 
per with the pleadings. The Spanish laws are yet provi- 
sionally in force — it requires revision still. 

Alcavalas. The law of 3d October suppressed alcavalas 
on the sales of articles of food and the arts. The alcavala had 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 553 

its origin in barbarous principles and times, and was always 
vexatious, — immoral, — unproductive, — and unjust — not to 
be collected without difficulty and delay — vexatious searches 
and trouble to the contributors. The tax-gatherers added to 
its enormity grievous exactions, and M'ere equally implaca- 
ble enemies to the poor, and abject serviles to the rich ; it 
led to concealments, perjuries, and taught men to enrich 
themselves without labour at the expense of the public. It 
was unproductive, because exacted from the wretched alone, 
the least able to pay, while those who were able to pay eluded 
it by a trifling bribe ; it caused the enhancement of the 
prices of commodities, and thus paralyzed trade, and more 
than one- tenth of it never entered the public treasury. 

The Direct Tax. This law in its principle fixed the 
hopes of the country. Indirect taxes have the character of 
hidden infirmities^ of deception^ and fraudulent concealment 
from those who are taxed without seeing the hand that enacts 
it, and are baleful to morals and to liberty. Direct taxes 
are honest and open ; they preserve a due proportion with 
incomes and profits ; there is no vexation nor exaction in 
the levying ; the expense of collecting is small and determi- 
nate. The law levying a tax upon income is still defective ; 
it wants clearness, comprehensiveness, and discrimination. 
Different causes have yet made it unproductive ; disaffected 
persons have inveighed against it ; the intendants and go- 
vernors, and political judges, have been careless, or connived 
at the defrauding of the public. The want of returns of 
property with descriptions, and the scarcity of money, have 
combined with the rest to render the product small, and 
the vexatious conduct of some tax-collectors have been seized 
upon to oppose the tax as a bad one. If the indirect taxes 
were sufficient for the expenditure, the direct might be alto- 
gether suppressed as unnecessary ; but if these be not suffi- 
cient, and it be inconceivable how a nation could exist with- 

70 



054 TISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

out revenue, all that can be done, is so to improve and amend 
the law as to render abuses impracticable. 

The foregoing statements display the state of the financial 
affairs; the estimates of the five departments show the 
amount necessary to the e:^penditure. 

Two memorials will be laid before congress, one respect- 
ing the laws on imports and taxes, which will not propose 
any new tax ; another on the system of administration, di- 
rected to the perfecting of the system, and increasing the 
amount by a more effective regulation. The great mystery 
consists in opening sources of public prosperity ; this belongs 
to congress. Every people that has established its indepen- 
dence by arms and victory, have passed through disasters 
like Colombia ; our present duties are confined to imitating 
their noble example ; and Colombia possesses advantages 
such as no nation ever before possessed. 

All nations negociate loans when necessary, and the re- 
public must do so likewise ; and a loan has been proposed 
through the department of foreign affairs. It is not to us so 
serious an affair as to other countries. It is disagreeable to 
me that this statement cannot be presented with information 
more detailed, but the defects are not to be ascribed to want 
of zeal, application, or labour. 

Report of the Alinister of War^ P. Br'iceho Mendez, 
Placed at the head of the departments of war and navy, it is 
my duty to report on the condition of our military institu- 
tions ; may I be permitted to express with all the warmth of 
my feelings, how much I participate in the general joy. The 
Colombian army feels itself recompensed for its unsurpassed 
exertions, for the precious blood shed in thirteen years of 
battles, in seeing the beneficent authority of the laws esta- 
blished in tranquillity and freedom. Those soldiers who 
knew how to exalt themselves above every want, privation, 
and danger, are ready, whenever their country calls, to be- 
come again the models of every heroic virtue, to be the first 



M 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 555 

to repel tyranny, and to support the national liberty and in- 
dependence. 

It would be superfluous to recommend to Congress atten- 
tion to the services of the army. To liberate the republic 
from its oppressors, to preserve union and tranquillity within, 
has been their happy fortune. Congress will contemplate 
that neither a prepared organization, nor the force, nor the 
means which could be provided for the army, corresponded 
with the effects they have produced, the enterprizes they 
have undertaken, or the triumphs they have achieved. In 
that irresistible hurricane into which we were impelled during 
a long and disastrous contest, the establishment of any in- 
variable system was not practicable. Whatever has been 
done was for the moment, the work of circumstances, be- 
cause where war and battles were incessant, changing every 
day the aspect of affairs ; and, added to all, the inevitable 
confusion incident to a change from one system of govern- 
ment to another wholly different, and the union of districts 
before independent of each other, with laws unlike each 
other, w^hat has been accomplished is surprising. 

The legislative bodies would not risk a change in the 
military institutions during the war, and the regulations in 
force under Spain were adopted, though the old code has 
become obsolete, both in the forms of discipline and princi- 
pled of tactics, owing to the progress of the science, arising 
out of the French Revolution. 

The generous zeal of the chiefs made up for the want of 
system ; corps were instructed according to the experience 
of the officer placed in command ; the levies made upon 
emergency did not allow of selection, recruits were taken 
without distinction of age or condition ; the married and 
even those who had numerous families filled the ranks ; a 
change from peace and abundance to a life of military hard- 
ships and privations, and the dangers arising from change 
of climate ; an inevitable necessity, the choice between eter- 



556 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

nal slavery and freedom, demanded the conscription. It is 
not therefore extraordinary that great armies should have 
been swallowed up without augmenting the effective force ; 
desertions, diseases, and battle, dissolve the best armies. 
Convinced of these, and other circumstances, an attempt was 
made last year to produce a better system ; but the state of 
the treasury did not sustain the effort ; and a reduction of 
numbers became the substitute. But the vices and abuses 
that remain, derived from the Spanish system, also lead to 
disorganization, and, in truth, it would be preferable to pro- 
ceed without any military administration, than that the pre- 
sent should remain. Much of the evils have arisen from er- 
roneous ideas of economy ; which, by diminishing the num- 
ber of the necessary officers, several functions were bestowed 
on the few retained, by which means nothing was well done, 
and the saving of a few hundred dollars pay wasted many 
thousands, and many lives. At length no officers could be 
found to entangle themselves in responsibilities which they 
could not fulfil ; a whole corps have been so placed that it 
was not possible to discover to whom pay was due, or to 
whom it had been advanced. 

After this lamentable exposition it may be consoling to 
learn that, in the present year, some order has been introduced, 
and, although the army has not received, for years, nearly 
half its pay ; in some departments not one third ; in others 
not one fourth ; but now all the corps are clothed, and the 
magazines contain equipments for a greater number; and 
pay has been advanced in a greater proportion. I am not 
yet furnished with all the returns necessary to a complete de- 
tail ; it must be the work of time and system. 

Strength of the Army. When Congress closed its ses- 
sion, in 1821, the public force consisted of 22,975 men. 
The garrisons necessary to be guarded, and the predatory 
expeditions of the enemy, caused it to be augmented to 
32,566 men ; of the following classes : 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 557 

Infantry . . 25,750 men 
Cavalry . . 4,296 
Artillery . . 2,520—32,566. 

All this force was enlisted without limitation. There are 
few in service of those enlisted in 1817, 1818, and 1819; 
the greater portion are of 1820. No bounty or addition to 
pay are known in* our service. The cavalry, hitherto 
mounted by the voluntary contributions of the citizens, for 
temporary service, require to be entirely remounted; a thou- 
sand abuses arise out of the want of an anticipated provision ; 
the soldier losing his horse in service, contemplates the duty 
to his country only — disregarding private property, seizes 
a horse against the will of the owner ; the officer, who has 
not the means to provide, actuated by public zeal, connives 
at such means, because they afford strength to his corps, or 
prevent its dissolution. 

In the artillery force are comprehended four hundred arti- 
sans employed in the military arsenals ; the remainder can- 
not be dispensed with in the service of garrisons. So long 
as the war exists, the immense line of our coasts, and the 
desperation of our enemies, require that the present force be 
maintained; the number is short of one per cent, of our po- 
pulation. 

Organization. No provision was made by congress in 
1821, when the civil departments were instituted, for the mi- 
litary organization. The pre-existing territorial division into 
intendancies, pointed out a corresponding order of military 
districts. This incident has been conducive to that order 
which has so admirably prevailed throughout the republic, 
though there is still ample room for improvement. At the 
head of each division or department there is a general com- 
mandant with his staff, reduced indeed to the lowest possi- 
ble standard : one chief of the staff, two aids, and two clerks, 



55S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which, with the local commandants in the provinces and for= 
tresses, constitute the force of each military department. 

. The infantry is organized in battalions, with the exception 
of the corps forming the government guard, to be subse- 
quently noticed; it consists of twenty-five battalions of the 
line, and five of light troops. Some are differently organ- 
ized, having only five or six companies, but are ordered to 
to be organized into battalions of eight, which is now the 
composition of the greater number. 

Each battalion consists of one company of grenadiers, one 
of light infantry, six of fusileers; each company consists of one 
hundred effectives, and four commissioned officers; the light 
companies each one commissioned officer more. The se- 
parate battalions had a heavy staff proportioned to their for- 
mer composition ; the new organization, by augmenting the 
battalions to an uniform number of companies, reduces the 
mimber of officers. But the extent of our country, the de- 
solation of the war, and our peculiar mode of warfare, are 
opposed to the formation of very numerous corps. 

The battalion staff consists of the commandant taken from 
the colonels or lieutenant- colonels, a major, two adjutants, 
one ensign, one surgeon, one chaplain, an armourer, drum- 
-major, and seven pioneers. 

The cavalry organization is more defective ; it consists of 
twenty -four squadrons, some of which are detached, others 
in regiments, besides the six squadrons of the guard, which 
form a brigade. The same irregularity prevails in the cavalry- 
squadrons as in the infantry battahons, some being composed 
of three troops, according to the older Prussian system, others 
according to the preferable and more modern, of two troops 
to the squadron. Each troop of the former consists of fifty 
men, and three commissioned officers ; the latter of eighty 
men, and four officers. Of the twenty -four squadrons, there 
are eighteen of the line, lancers, or dragoons, the other six 
are light hussars. The staff of each was as incompatible as 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 559 

that of the infantry ; for every hundred and fifty or hun- 
dred and sixty men had eight or nine officers. There is a 
lieutenant- colonel commandant, two adjutants, a cornet, sur- 
geon, chaplain, armourer, saddler, farrier, and trumpeter, 
with the title of major in their respective ranks. The greater 
number of corps are destitute of the workmen. 

The artillery is but of recent institution. The rapidity of 
our marches ; the carnage in our battles, principally decided 
by close combat ; the want of roads capable of admitting the 
transport of carriages, have made us indifferent to this terri- 
ble species of arms, so perfect and decisive in modern war- 
fare ; since the occupation of our fortresses it has become 
necessary. Besides the 2120 men of which it consists, there 
are four hundred artisans in the arsenals. The corps is com- 
posed of twenty-four companies, of one hundred men, and 
five officers each. When there are four companies in a de- 
tachment, they form a brigade, and have a lieu tenant- colonel 
commandant, and two adjutants; when the number is more 
than one and less than four, they are denominated demibri- 
gades, and the senior captain commands, having an adjutant 
attached. The separate companies remain without a staff. 

This organization requires further improvement. 

There does not exist a single squacK^on of flying artillery, 
although, if a glance be cast on the immense plains of the re- 
public, no country could be better adapted for such a force. 
The same may be said of engineers of works, and topogra- 
phy, and of sappers, of which there are only two or three 
in the service, and without employment in the line or any 
special duty. 

The Government Guard. This corps is comprised in the 
strength of the army : it is treated separately on account of its 
peculiar organization. It consists of ten battalions of infantry, 
and six regiments of cavalry, of the same composition as the 
rest of the army. The difference consisting in this, that the 
infantry forms a division under the command of a general 



060 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of division, subdivided into two brigades, with a brigadier or 
colonel to each. The cavalry forms another brigade com- 
manded also by a brigadier. The two branches have a com- 
mandant general, with the staff such as appertains to a corps 
of the army. 

The guard, created by the Liberator President, when he 
filled the station of commander in chief in Venezuela, has 
been since augmented by the addition of corps, that have 
distinguished themselves by their discipline, example, or in- 
trepidity. They enjoy no other privilege or distinction, 
than being the oldest in the army, furnishing the guard of 
honour to the government, and being the first on all occa- 
sions to march and meet the enemy. This institution has 
produced a noble and salutary emulation. Two battalions 
and a squadron were incorporated with it last year on ac- 
count of brilliant services. 

Administration. It does not merit the name, and I have 
said so, and shown the cause of its bad condition. It must be 
newly organized, without which it will not be practicable to 
account for the funds appropriated for its service. The go- 
vernment has been under the necessity of calling upon trea- 
surers of departments, to take charge of the military disburse- 
ments, and exercise ^e functions of commissaries or audi- 
tors, by inspecting the propriety and authority for the is- 
sues. One inconvenience I notice, and shall pass over others, 
and then tire congress no longer. Money having become 
the general recompense, and the only means of providing 
for vvants and comforts, has also become the foundation of all 
enterprises. The military chief should, therefore, be exactly 
acquainted with his means and resources beforehand. If 
he cannot contract for means or direct expenditures that are 
indispensable, he is liable to be frustrated at every move- 
ment. Without unity of action he must be compelled to 
reveal the secret of his combinations, and military operations 
must fail. While any other authority has a right to inter- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 061 

fere in his dispositions, time is wasted in painful altercations, 
responsibility is divided and diminished, and if unfortunately 
jealousy or enmity, want of confidence, or rivalry exist, the 
most innocent actions become subjects of accusation or im- 
putation, and the passions of individuals prevail against the 
interest of the country ; for such is the frailty of human na- 
ture, in all ages and countries. 

Clothing and Pay, Notwithstanding the absence of sys- 
tem, the army has been clothed, though not uniformly. The 
regulation of these branches is demanded by necessity. The 
strict regulation of uniforms is also indispensable, to avoid 
the capricious luxury of vanity, and the inequality of corps. 
The mode for verifying accounts calls also for a law. 

Arms. The formation of a depot of arms, besides supply- 
ing the army, has been the care of government. Experi- 
ence, purchased very dearly, has taught the prudence of this. 
All the troops of the line are well armed ; the light infantry 
and artillery are armed with carabines ; the cavalry of the line 
with the lance, that formidable weapon, which has been the 
instrument of safety and salvation to the republic ; the light 
cavalry bear carabines, and sabres, or lances. The arsenals 
contain 20,000 spare stands of musquets, of which many 
require repair. There are sufficient to defend the republic. 
The variety of calibres is an inconvenience, being of the 
manufacture of France, Germany, Spain, England, and the 
United States. Those of English £ibric amount to 30,000 ; 
and out of 28,000 purchased last year 17,000 are English. 
12,000 more contracted for, may be hourly expected. 

The carabines are mostly formed of old muskets, the 
weight of which renders them not so effective or convenient 
for service. The accoutrements of all corps are in good 
order, and our workshops are employed upon them. The 
cavalry accoutrements are not so good, but the vk'orkshops 
will supply the deficiency by better articles. 

71 



S62 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Militia, However numerous the regular army may be, 
it cannot be omnipresent. A militia, well organized, has 
this character of ubiquity. It preserves the medium be- 
tween military and civil life, and, in the very bosom of their 
families, they make excellent soldiers, and develope their ta- 
lents. It is the best army of reserve, and the most solid 
foundation of public liberty and security. Two mistakes 
should be avoided in its formation, though concealed under 
a supposed good. Firsts gi^"^g it too great an extension, 
which renders it useless. Second^ the false prudence which 
vi'ould mislead the militia man, that the parade and exercise 
is a mere form— that he will never be called upon to perform 
the duties of a soldier, — when the very foundation of all re- 
publics is, that every man should be prepared to defend his 
country and liberties, and that he must be infamous who would 
withhold himself. The laws, and practices, have contributed 
to the inefficiency ; for, although all men owe a duty, it is not 
that all will be at once called upon to perform it ; instead of 
selecting a class by age, the laws have followed the ge- 
neral principle by comprehending the whole population at 
once. The constitution itself, by withdrawing the militia 
from military subordination, has mjured what it endeavour- 
ed to perfect. The want of a regulation confirmed the in-^ 
sufficiency. A special report will make its condition known. 

There are but thirteen battalions of militia infantry in 
the republic, organized like the army, of which ten were 
formed this year in the departments of Magdalena, Panama, 
and Quito, for which the government is indebted to the 
commandant general. Forty thousand men might be form- 
ed out of the fifty thousand that exist in detached compa- 
nies, a greater force than could be required to repel any in- 
vasion. 

There are twenty squadrons of irregular cavalry ; out of 
these twelve regiments might be formed, making 8590 men. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 663 

There are only seven companies of one hundred men each, 
of militia artillery. But none of the militia are armed. 

Fortresses. There are some which should be demolished ; 
others, neglected during the war, require substantial repairs 
to prevent their entire ruin. Some should be erected also 
in fit positions ; but these are the work of future seasons. 

Parks of Artillery. — These have been vastly augmented 
during the war, but do not yet suffice for the defence of our 
frontier. Gunpowder, lead, balls, and muskets, cannot be 
dispensed with. The quantity required of each must be the 
subject of deliberation. 

Barracks and Cantonments < — The forces maintained be- 
fore the revolution by Spain, had only for object to maintain 
tranquillity ; one or two battalions in some principal point or 
garrison were the strongest force kept together. Quarters 
for the troops were calculated accordingly. The citizens 
have supplied the deficiency cheerfully during the war; rent 
has been sometimes paid, but very seldom has it been re- 
quired. Our soldiers hitherto have slept on the earth ; quarters 
should be provided, and our soldiers will not in future give 
so much trouble in the hospitals. The Spaniards, who were 
intolerable tyrants, by quartering officers on the people, excit- 
ed execration ; and there should be provision to guard against 
incurring the same reproach. It is necessary to discipline that 
officers should quarter where their troops are quartered. 

Manufactories. — There are two for gunpowder, one in 
Quito, the other near this capital in a bad condition. Data 
are w'anting to ascertain the expenses. That near this capital 
has but one mill of four mallets, which grind 330 quintals a 
year. Cost iS24,937 : four reals is more than powder could be 
procured from abroad for. The saltpetre works of the republic 
have been given upon contract to persons who prepare the 
nitre, and sell it to government. This arrangement has con- 
siderably reduced the price of powder, which cost fifty per 
cent, more than at present, when nitre was prepared at public 
expense. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIAe 

Invalids and Retired Soldiers* — Establishments should be 
formed for them in each department. The government has 
no other law than its gratitude to regulate its conduct towards 
those martyrs of liberty. The moment which almost com- 
pleted the triumph of our arms permitted some relief to be 
offered to them, and it was as much as could be given. Six- 
teen chiefs and sixty -four officers retired last year, some on 
half pay, others on the third or fourth of the pay of their last 
rank. Some have also retired without demanding any re- 
muneration. 

Military Instruction. — The first care of Spanish domina- 
tion was to keep at a distance from our country every thing 
that could enlighten or enable us to feel our own strength, 
and this malignity was carried to that extreme which caused 
us to be unacquainted with the most necessary arts of life. 
Thence it was, that on proclaiming our emancipation we had 
no chiefs or officers to lead us, and if experience and genius 
have provided some, after so many disasters, it only proves 
the dispositions and capacities of our youth. Congress, in 
providing the means of public information, overlooked the 
army, the foundation upon which it has been raised. Phi- 
losophy is not the director of the world ; unmixed good is a 
chimera ; true wisdom is found in distinguishing that obscure 
line which separates it from relative good. If a nation of 
philosophers were possible, their laws would be fit only for 
themselves; they would have good fathers of families and vir- 
tuous magistrates ; but they would be the prey and the sport 
of their neighbours. Unarmed virtue must yield to force, 
military skill, and the custom of conquering and slaying. 

Colombia above all nations requires military education. 
Our position, central on the globe, makes us the neighbours 
of all maritime nations, and gives us for rivals the most pow- 
erful states of this continent ; we should, therefore, be pre- 
pared. The seas which separate us from the old world are 
no longer a barrier, since navies serve as an immeasurable 
bridge. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 565 

Besides the want of military colleges capable of forming 
officers and engineers, we have no uniform system of instruc- 
tion and tactics, in any branch of the army ; but it is chiefly- 
remarkable in the infantry and cavalry. A system is neces- 
sary, were it only to root out the prejudices of different sys- 
tems, and the caprices of chiefs, producing a want of unity, 
and leaving to the generals a double difficulty of combining 
corps differently instructed. A commission of general officers 
was formed in January last year. Their proceedings shall 
be laid before Congress. 

Fulfilment of the Laws. — The whole army have sworn to 
the constitution as required by the decree of 20th September 
1821, and with just rejoicings, and a copy is ordered to be 
kept in the major's office of every corps. The mode of pay- 
ment prescribed by the decree of 7th December was carried 
into effect. 

The Armies and their Operations* — At the close of the last 
legislature, six corps were engaged in operations. The first, 
under J. F. Bermudez, besieged Cumana, which resisted 
our attacks at different periods for eight years ; the second, 
under Jose A. Paez, blockaded Porto Cabello, where the 
wreck of the Spanish army took shelter after the battle of Ca- 
rabobo ; the third concentrated at Santa Marta, under Mar. 
Montilla, intended for the Isthmus ; the fourth besieging 
Cartagena from 1820 ; the other two covering Guayaquil and 
Popayan against the enemy's force, then occupying Quito. 
These were under the Liberator president, for whom the libe- 
ration of the south was reserved. The heights of Juanambu 
and Guaitara, and the deleterious deserts of Patia, had opposed 
a barrier to our arms, which some thought insuperable ; to 
these natural impediments, others were added : the division 
of Guayaquil, attacked at the end of the year 1821, obtained 
a brilliant victory, and Gen. Sucre was animated to prosecute 
operations ; this army experienced a reverse ; the division 
was nearly destroyed, and that of Popayan, which moved to 



566 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

reinforce it, met a similar fate from the climate of Patia. 
These adverse circumstances were aggravated by the en- 
trance of the Spanish general Murjeon into Quito, bringing 
arms and munitions of war, of which the enemy stood in 
need, with veteran troops and experienced officers ; and still 
more, the naval force, which conveyed them, interrupted the 
communication between Choco and Guayaquil, separating 
also the corps in Popayan. 

It was necessary to create and organize the army anew, 
relaxed by disaster and suffering. A genius of constancy 
and resource only, could meet these events undismayed ; 
without a fleet, without ships to deceive the enemy's squad- 
ron, troops were transported by Panama and Buenaventura 
to Guayaquil. Instead of a superannuated general, the new 
Spanish chief was distinguished by activity, valour, and talent, 
and clothed with unlimited powers. The Spanish force now 
so augmented, that, instead of one army, they presented 
three ; and to complete all, Popayan became unhealthy. The 
army, inactive, was eaten up by disease; the Spaniards 
strengthening themselves daily ; to open the campaign under 
such circumstances would seem to compromise every thing. 

The Liberator President determined and succeeded in re- 
inforcing Guayaquil with troops from Colombia, and a 
column from Peru, which had joined General Sucre from 
Cuenca ; at the same time the division from Popayan, strongly 
reinforced by corps sent by the government, and part of the 
veteran troops from Santa Martha, were put in motion. 

The enemy, though so strong, would not encounter either 
of the corps, and concentrated his army on the shelving 
rocks of Pastos, and the elevated sierra of Quito, in order to 
secure the adherence of the people in Pastos and Patia ; and 
under an expectation of weakening our force by obliging us 
to march through an insalubrious desert. One affair at 
Riobamba, two battles at Bombona and Pinchincha, de- 
molished all the sanguine hopes of the Spanish chief. Led 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 567 

by the Libtrator and General Sucre, wherever our arms ap- 
peared they triumphed, and the enemy required a capitula- 
tion, dehvering up his arms. The south of the repubHc 
thus hberated, a spontaneous declaration of gratitude was 
followed by a proclamation of incorporation. 

This severe but brilliant campaign being closed, our neigh- 
bours of Peru, menaced by a Spanish army, called for our 
aid. Three battalions marched for Peru, and were united 
with another already on service there. A treaty was pro- 
posed, to place our troops on the basis of those of Peru ; but 
the government recently installed there hesitated, and our 
three battalions returned to Guayaquil, where they went into 
good quarters. 

The battles of Bombona and Pinchincha gave peace to 
the south ; but the capitulations of Quito and Berruecos 
were a short time disturbed by a Spanish chief in Pastos, 
who escaped from the depot of prisoners at Quito. After 
three engagements they were chastised. An insurrection in 
Coro was soon suppressed, and an amnesty published. But 
the troops who accomplished it were destined to share in a 
glorious achievement at Carabobo, where the Spaniards lost 
their army and their arrogance. 

The report continues the history down to its date, but the 
events in Venezuela being better known than those west of 
the Andes, they have not the same interest. 

The Report on Naval Affairs was presented by the head 
the War Department. The Secretary acknowledges his in- 
sufficiency of knowledge on naval affairs, not having be- 
longed to the navy, and having had no leisure to cultivate it. 
The geographical position of Colombia, the number of its 
excellent ports, the abundance and richness of its produc- 
tions, decide for a naval force. A thousand leagues of coast 
open an easy access, and could not be covered by a large 
regular army. 



568 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The services of a generous foreigner, (commodore Brion,) 
who, led by the love of liberty, devoted his fortune and his 
life to the service of the republic, induced the government, 
in 1816, to create the office of admiral, who exercised the 
control, command, and administration of the navy ; but va- 
rious causes rendered it ultimately inefficient. The Con- 
gress, by the law of 4th October, perceived the cause, and, 
in part, removed it. The office of admiral was suppressed. 
Without the friendship of any maritime power, without ar- 
senals, gunners, ship-builders, or competent officers or sea- 
men, and even without pecuniary means to build or buy 
them, the battle of Carabobo had changed the character of 
the war, and demanded a naval force. The effiarts made un- 
der the law of 4th October produced what we desired. Our 
fleet increased, from the five left by the late admiral was 
augmented to nineteen, six corvettes, seven brigs, and six 
schooners. Among the former is the Spanish corvette Ma- 
ria Franciscaj captured by a ship of the republic. 

Our vessels of war are commanded and manned chiefly by 
foreigners. Under the monopoly of Spain, sailors could not 
be formed. The law of 27th September admitted foreign 
seamen, who came generously to offer their services, bringing 
with them an important science, and an example for our 
population. We have a navy, we must have arsenals and 
magazines to repair and replace vessels. Carthagena pre- 
sents a fine station for a dock-yard, and one of its castles is 
assigned for an arsenal. The expenses for naval affairs for 
the current year are 4,770,845 dollars. 

These reports combine the best and most authentic state 
of the repubhc at the beginning of 1823. But Colombia, 
like the United States after its revolution, will require a new 
history every four or five years. 



569 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 

departure from Bogota — Quindiu — Facltativa — sleep on the domestic altar-^ 
knavery of muleteers — Rio Dulce — uncivil ecclesiastics — escape a troublesome 
traveller — stupendous steeps — Guadas — Colonel Acosta — enviably happy man 
— Acratcha, species of pheasant — the Bodega of Honda — Honda — la mafiana— 
champans — and bogas — hints to travellers. 

My friend Mr. John Gethen, of Philadelphia, and my- 
self, agreed to proceed down the Magdalena together, and 
at 8 o'clock, the 27th April, 1823, we left Bogota. We 
were attended by my invaluable guide Sergeant Proctor, 
and a valet, from the island of St. Bartholomew's. In dis- 
posing of my mules, the sergeant had reserved the use of 
them to carry me and my young fellow-travellers to Honda, 
The sergeant had already escorted them, and now kindly 
undertook the same good offices for me, and would have fol- 
lowed me over the world if I were in the mood. Mr. G. 
had not been treated honestly in the mules furnished ; as his 
experience had not prepared him for such sorry mules as 
were brought, and when we had no alternative. The day 
was however delicious, though it was somewhat tedious, as 
my mules were eager to push on in their accustomed gait. 
But we had not completed more than one half of the day's 
march, when we were compelled to halt at a ranclio^ and 
transfer my baggage to one of Mr. G.*s mules, and hire one 
extra in place of that broken down. This was the more to 
be complained of, because the road over which we had so far 
travelled was equal to any in the world. 

Upon descending from the city to the great road, towards 
the Magdalena, the country presented a beautiful verdant 
carpet. The road was constructed with great skill, and well- 
directed labour ; it could not be less than one hundred feet 
wide for several miles, and each side occupied by long ranges 

72 



570 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of thatched and tiled houses, the habitations'of muleteers and 
husbandmen : there are spacious ditches on each side of this 
road, and, after advancing something north of west, a fine 
pavement of about twenty feet broad occupies the midway, 
with convenient foot-paths on either side. 

The Funza intersects this road, a lake which appears to 
have been formerly more ample, but is now gradually be- 
coming a swamp, of which the white heron and the grey 
heron betray the shallowness, by constantly traversing the bed 
of water in all directions, and the growth of rushes indicate 
the swamp. A small rivulet, which (I only suspect) flows 
from a source further west, nearer to Facitativa, proceeds in a 
south-east current, and unites with the Funza. These waters 
form streams so considerable, that five stone bridges of ex- 
cellent architecture cross them at different parts of this road. 
One of those bridges of three arches is handsome, and all of 
them of the best workmanship. 

On some of those bridges are the wrecks of armorial insig- 
nia, which were originally in relief, rather ancient in style. I 
understood some of them designated the arms of some vice- 
roy, but those who were asked usually told some story of 
viceregal outrage, and evaded telling the name. The bridges 
were however good, with handsome wing walls and battlements, 
and reduced the distance perhaps to one-third that must be 
travelled over were there no bridges. After passing those 
bridges, that part of the plain which is crossed to visit Ta- 
quendama opens on the view south, and its perpetual vapour 
is seen rising above its forest-clad hills. 

Immediately after crossing, a village is seen ; it is the ori- 
ginal Bogota ; there the Spaniards first established them- 
selves; the present city being founded only after some 
experience of unhealthiness on the borders of this swamp. 
Appearances indicate that this pool will disappear altogether, 
but the village is populous, and the cultivation all around is 
ample. The green side banks and the pastures on each side 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 571 

oF this road were mottled with mushrooms, of the best edi- 
ble kind, {agaricus campestris,) of which we picked and 
saved a small basket for a travelling bon bouehe. 

The plain of Bogota is seen in its greatest length from the 
central bridge, and flocks and herds are visible on the plain, 
which are not distinguishable from the city. The great 
mountain which forms the west side of the valley or plain, is 
now found to stand on its own foundations, insulated and se- 
parated all round from any other ; it may be forty miles long, 
and the plain of Bogota fifteen to twenty broad, and the plain 
is of the same apparent level along both its sides and extre- 
mities ; it is the mountain ridge of Zipaquira, celebrated for 
rocks of salt. The plain which extends from the west face 
of this ridge of Zipaquira is very spacious ; and I have seen 
in no part of Colombia so many detached and ample farms, 
such farm-yards with grain handsomely stacked, abundance 
of cattle, sheep, mules, and horses. On a spacious field on 
the left of the route, being the gradual slope of the mountain 
that is crossed to reach Facitativa, I saw a very fine flock, of 
perhaps sixty, of the brown species of llamas, which so much 
resemble the camel ; there were many young with them, and 
they retired from us as we approached, with the first gaze, so 
remarkable in deer, and a similar flight, turning round to 
gaze and fly again. 

These animals have been denominated capra puda^ 
or wild goat. I cannot help feeling a repugnance to this 
forced analogy ; they have nothing that resembles the goat in 
its main characteristics of feet and horns. These brown lla- 
mas do not materially differ in stature or figure from the 
white llamas, of which we saw a beautiful pair domesticated 
at Sativa. These were the property of an opulent planter, 
whose hacienda was pointed out to us, but too much con- 
cealed to show more than a glimpse among its flourishing 
forests. 

In the west and north-west, two mountains appear of re- 



5T2 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

markable appearance ; they are called El Mesa and Ei Mesa 
Grande— the Table and the Greater Table, their names in- 
dicating the long transverse level line of their summits ; such 
as an Egyptian pyramid would appear if a third of its sum- 
mit was cut horizontally off; their sides not so much in- 
clined as the pyramid, and their upper line Iqftier than the 
summits of the rounded mountains all round. Looking from 
the same point to the south-west, the hoary Quindiu presents 
its lofty frustum of a cone, its flat level summit, and its cap 
of eternal snow, showing its rotundity, finely contrasted by 
the darkness of its steep sides below the limit of congelation, 
but so lofty and so sublime, that the three great chains of the 
Andes appear diminished into huts at its feet. Quindiu is 
in the central chain, and both the kindred ridges are to be 
seen in the prospect, drawn into apparent neighbourhood, 
though immensely separated. It was five o'clock when we 
crossed the Nocaymac and reached Facitativa. 

The alcalde provided a house, but we could not hang up 
our hammocks. In almost every house there is a sort of 
table upon which the lares are usually placed, under a veil, 
which is only removed when prayer is to be performed. 
This table, a rough bench, or the floor, were to be our 
sleeping places, so we prevailed upon the Senora whose 
house we occupied, to remove the holy apparatus, which she 
did with a good grace, and informing me, to my surprise, 
that my daughter had slept on the same mesa a month be- 
fore ; but this surprise was removed by the sergeant, whose 
sympathy of volubility and organ of communicativeness 
made him a great gossip, and favourite of the Senoras on 
every route he travelled — we had good chocolate of our 
own provision, and our cook, George, was a practical hand, 
so that in the way of food we had French cookery, and no 
manteca nor garlic^ till we reached Cartagena. Provision 
being to be had, and fine fruit the whole line of the Magda- 
lena j only that it is necessary to be prepared with a suffi- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 573 

cient knowledge of the language, or a faithful servant who 
does, (which is a difficulty !) and not to be too eager to 
pay high prices, which will only induce demands still high- 
er, nor to appear diffident or devoid of confidence. A fair, 
firm, and civil deportment, is the most comfortable to a man 
in every situation ; but without firmness nothing is to be done 
well with the classes concerned in the affiiirs of travellers, in 
South America — alcaldes^ muleteers^ pulpureias^ posaderos^ 
and bogas — there are large exceptions as to alcaldes, and 
some as to muleteers, but with this exception they are as 
great cheats as the horse-jockeys and vermin of the same 
kind in other parts of the world, and this is speaking too 
well of them. 

On the 28th we could not obtain mules at four o'clock, 
as we proposed ; at eight o'clock we set off, but the mule 
upon which my fellow traveller rode was scarcely able to 
move at the end of four miles ; the only expedient was 
to send back and hire another mule, and divide the bag- 
gage of one mule between two ; which was doubling the 
expense, as there being no remedy against exaction, and the 
mule owner being paid in advance, the choice of difficulties 
lay between stopping and going to law with the muleteer,, 
before the alcalde, who, perhaps, was himself the owner of the 
hired mules, or had a share in the pillage which he was to 
decide upon — or hiring an additional mule ; the latter was 
by five hundred per cent, the cheapest, and it was done. 

The rain which, though not very heavy, was very effi;c- 
tive on the black mould which covered the route we had to 
pass, over the steep and winding mountains leading through 
Bergara, Numayna, and Maves, to Villeta. The rains had 
been more heavy in the region above us, to the west, and as 
the Rio Dulce was, in the judgment of the sergeant, likely 
to be too much swelled to be passable, and no accommoda- 
tions likely to be had on the right side of that river where 
it was usually forded, we took the route to the south-west, 



574 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

leading towards the ridge separating this valley from the 
Magdalena : this route was a slough, amidst exuberant, wild 
vegetation ; but the appearance of a good covered wooden 
bridge over the Dulce^ which sheltered us for a time from 
the rain, and prepared us for a most fatiguing grope of three 
miles, within sight of the river, till within half a mile of Vil- 
leta, which we entered at six o'clock. No alcalde was to 
be found ; and, as usual, like many people in the last extre- 
mity, we had recourse to the church — but Fra. Jose Torri- 
hio Garcia, who presented himself in the externals of the 
order of St. Dominic, had not the same feelings as the 
worthy Franciscan, of the name of Garcia, whom we had 
known at Pipa and Tunja. But here was a master-spirit^ 
in a purple jerkin, with gold filagre and chain buttons, whose 
tonsure was concealed by a purple velvet cap, concerning 
whom I was almost induced to exclaim, with Scrub, " he 
looks like a Jesuit." — Garcia in pontificals was certainly 
not more than twenty-three, and his complacency of expres- 
sion, when I addressed him, was pleasing, but the gentle, 
man, in the purple-coloured wig, passed like a cloud over 
his face, and the youth bowed deferentially to his purple 
cap — foreclosing our solicitation ; though it was raining 
drops as round as grapes. " Any port in a storm" — we 
saw an open shed on the opposite side of the square, and 
without thanking Fra. Jose Torribio Garcia, or his purple 
prolocutor, we took cover ; and the neighbours, more hos- 
pitable than the priest, opened for us a sufficiently spacious 
house, where we hung up our hammocks, and went through 
the usual process of banishing discomfort : but though, in 
the way of cookery, our complaints were averted by the 
economic pride of our cook of St. Bartholomew's, we had 
something else to annoy us, besides insects, of which we 
had heard Viileta was proverbially noisome ; but, excepting 
the unchristian priests, we found nothing animated in Vii- 
leta that was troublesome, but a sort of prodigy, an ill-iia- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 575 

tured Frenchman. This person inhabited the posada in 
Bogota, where I staid, for about a fortnight ; but his man- 
ners prevented any conversation beyond monosyllables, 
while we ate our eggs or sipped our chocolate at the posa- 
da. He made repeated overtures to accompany us on the 
route to Honda and Cartagena, which we declined uniform- 
ly, on the plea of business on the route; and, when we left 
the posada, had instructed the posadero to conceal our de- 
parture, as we did not wish to be annoyed by this eternal 
babbler, and his companion of the same cast of phiz, but 
less flippant tongue. I had unavoidably overheard a con- 
versation between him and his comrade, of a piratical cast, 
and avoided him. But here he had overtaken us — for, 
when he found we had set out a day before, he nevertheless 
determined to keep us company : fortunately, though the 
people would have given us the house if it were a palace, 
their good will in providing a chamber large enough for us, 
but not for more than us, obliged this unpleasant traveller 
to seek another place, which the civility of the people provi- 
ded, but with whom he quarrelled before nine at night, and 
was in consequence taken care of by the alcalde. We heard 
the noise, and the alcalde applied to us upon some represen- 
tation of this ruffian-looking fellow, that we were his particu- 
lar friends — but our merely declaring our total unacquaint- 
ance answered the purpose we wished, w^ithout the least idea 
of doing more than save ourselves from the imputation of 
such an acquaintance ; and the alcalde requested me to deli- 
ver a letter to Colonel Acosta, at Guaduas, for advice how 
to act, as I afterwards understood to be the object of the 
letter. 

We had determined to be off early, and a thick mist fa- 
voured our movements ; we were ascending the steep sides 
of El Sargente by half past five o'clock, and on the very 
summit I experienced the only actual involuntary fall of the 
whole journey ; it was in a deep mire, in which my excellent 



576 VISIT TO COLOMBIA^ 

mule sunk to the shoulder ; and in truth my first apprehen- 
sion was for the poor faithful animal, which had carried mc 
so many hundred miles not only with security and ease, but 
without a moment's dissatisfaction. We succeeded in ex- 
tricating die mule without injury, and descended through 
indescribable ravines. 

Some idea of the steepness of this descent may be con- 
ceived from a comparison of the facts. Under the viceroy- 
iilty, a measurement had been made of a great part of the 
route from Honda to Bogota : the height of Bogota above 
the sea, was 1365 toises, equal to 8190 feet of Castile ; the 
descent to Villeta, only two days' journey by the road, not 
more than sixty miles ; that village was only 556 toises, equal 
to 3936 feet, or a descent of 4154 feet in sixty miles. We 
reached Guadas at half past four, and addressed ourselves, 
as all travellers do who pass through that town, to the vene- 
rated Colonel Acosta^ who is at once the military comman- 
dant, the civil magistrate, the owner of the land on which the 
town stands, and that adjacent, and who is, by all within his 
jurisdiction, considered as a father, benefactor, protector, and 
friend. We had the acquaintance of his family, who were 
our neighbours and intimates in the Plaza St. Francisco at 
Bogota, and his brothers and sister had written to him. 
Though it was not less agreeable, our treatment would have 
been good, as ail strangers of good deportment find in him 
an active and a generous friend. We had an apartment as- 
signed to us, water, napkins, and soap, to wash, and fine 
orgeat, oranges, melons, bananas, and guavas laid before us 
for a refresco ; and while we were engaged in the chat of the 
day, dinner was announced, though our refresco was to me 
the best of desirable dinners. We, however, did honour to 
our host, and to his good wine, and the more we knew the 
more we esteemed the man. Taking it that he is himself 
content to be retired from the bustle and the books, the am- 
bition and the vanity, which makes so much of the world's 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 577 

business, no man can be more happy in the capacity to live, 
and the gratification of dispensing blessings to the neighbour- 
hood over which he presides ; he is as a providence to the 
stranger, whose entertainment in Guaduas is as free of charge 
as the sun's benignant beams. 

I could not but admire the tranquil satisfaction and the 
absence of every line of care from this good man's visage. 
There were several animals rambling about his halls and his 
patio, usually wild, but here sporting in heedless confidence. 
At dinner a pair of birds, of the size of a pheasant, fluttered 
round the room, and one perched on his chair, and ate rice 
from his hand : I took a sketch of the bird as it sat on his 
shoulder ; its name was acratscha; the body pheasant-shaped, 
but with longer limbs and neck, colour chocolate throughout, 
beak parrot- shaped, but less curved ; a sparkling eye, with a 
brilliant golden circle around the iris, and a red fleshy mem- 
brane under the throat, pendant, of a substance like a cock's 
gills ; crest round and tufted. Its walk was stately, as that of 
a game cock, the breast full and the neck long but tapering, 
smallest behind the crest and gills, and gradually swelling to 
the shoulder or the pinion. We had fine coffee and cho- 
colate served round in the evening, and numerous visitors, 
with whom the time did not admit of much conversation, 
or more than passing acquaintance. We remained till nine 
o'clock on the 30th, Wednesday, before we could separate 
from our hospitable friend. We had concluded at Villeta 
that nothing could be so bad for the traveller, as the road 
descending to and approaching that place : the road thence to 
Gwac/wflj proved we were mistaken; it was tremendous — down 
— down — -down ! rocks, ravines, precipices, steeps, swamps, 
thus again and again ; free-stone ascents, which appeared to 
imbibe the moisture of a warm atmosphere, and crumble at 
the touch ; hills under- worn at the foot, tilted into the ravine, 
and steep gulleys washed by the mountain floods, leaving 
the large rocks naked and tottering, over which, and over 

73 



578 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

which only, lay the track for man and beast. There was tht* 
trial for breast-bands, girths, and cruppers, and there it was 
that the neck called for discretion, and the mule for commise- 
ration ; yet the loaded mule got over it better than the man ; 
unless, indeed, those flying mercuries^ the correos^ who, with 
a light pole of ten feet in hand, a bandage of muslin round 
their loins, and a straw hat, with a belt over the right shoul= 
der, and a sort of sabretache on the left, spring from rock to 
rock like kangaroos. 

It was cloudy, but there was no rain when we left Gua- 
duas ; crossed over a broken level, through which some rivu- 
lets wound their way, and on the uncultured plains found 
groves of the finest ^wai^a^, equal to the best of Bengal ; both 
red and white, and in perfect ripeness, of which being no 
one's property we laid in some store, which were not ex- 
hausted for some days after our arrival at Honda. 

This day's journey, bad as the preceding had been, was 
still worse. We re-ascended some miles of the upland, where, 
after passing the mountain range of free stone, a more com- 
pact grey granite, resembling, but darker, than blue lime- 
stone, made a pleasant footway over the brink of frightful 
precipices. We were so much fatigued on this day's jour- 
ney as to rest four several times before we reached the Bodega 
on the margin of the Magdalena, which we gained about 
half a mile higher, but in sight of Honda, which is on the 
left side, and below its confluence with the river Guali. 

Along the margin of the mountains, for the greatest part of 
the way, the Magdalena was visible like a small yellow rib- 
bon, or string of vermicelli, winding its way between the 
verdant slopes ; on either side, vast plains and variegated 
rolling hills, verdant and varied by picturesque and detached 
groups of forest. The height forbid every idea of discerning 
any thing living below^ ; it was the awful stillness and solitude 
of a world recently born, and come to maturity, without 
beings to inhabit it, but prepared and amply sufiicient to re. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 579 

eeive millions, and repay the lightest labour with hundred 
fold crops of the richest products of nature. As we approach- 
ed Honda, the descent from Villeta to that place is 426 
toises, equal to 2556 feet of Castile: here the Magdalena ap- 
peared in its grandeur. The rains in the Upper Andes, near 
the sources of the Magdalena and the Cauca, commence early 
in April, and the river rises to a great height after the floods 
have accumulated and poured into the valleys; the river was 
now coloured with the yellow soil through which it had pass- 
ed, and its surface was covered with vast accumulating rafts 
of drifting timber, which encountered and united, and swept 
before them headlands and rocks in their course, and often 
changed the direction of its own current, by the ruin which 
it had brought down. 

We reached the Bodega at half past five ; there was no 
internal accommodation at the ferry house ; there were neither 
fruit nor drinkables ; we had the last of our Bogota bread 
still in good condition. We procured milk, however, and 
some palm cocoa-nuts, of which I had been many years accus- 
tomed to make a beverage; and finding a sort of caravan- 
serai, or spacious thatched shed of about thirty yards long by 
twelve wide, provided for storing goods brought hither, we 
took possession of an angle of this place, and dismissing our 
hired mules, we went to rest in our hammocks with all the 
dehcious pleasure for which previous privations and fatigue 
prepare the traveller. 

I do not know how other people feel on such occasions, 
but there were some feelings associated vvith the parting from 
those poor abused, but inappreciable animals, the mules, that 
had conveyed us so faithfully more than 1500 miles — be- 
sides ministering to our accommodation during our residence 
at Bogota, that I am not ashamed to say I felt pain at parting 
with the poor animals, apprehensive that, severe as their tra- 
vail was with us, they might find less considerate owners. 

April 31st, crossed the Magdalena with our baggage, 



580 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

under charge of the sergeant and our cook George, who was 
here joined by an additional baggage^ whom he represented 
as his wife, a native of Mompox, whither she was proceed- 
ing. The expense of this part of the baggage was nothing, 
but in the kind of transport which alone can be had on the 
Magdalena, an additional person in the space to be occupied 
on the passage is a serious affair. However we were to part 
with our invaluable and indefatigable sergeant at Honda, 
and the loss of a servant like George then could not be sup- 
plied. Vincent had accompanied my family to Carthagena, 
and I had to compound the good which was to be rendered 
by George, for the inconvenience of his wife : and so we 
made up the account. 

We had some letters from Bogota to gentlemen at Honda, 
which were not indeed necessary, as the alcalde, who knew 
something of us, provided us a house, the whole of the first 
floor was at our disposal ; it was, in its days of prosperity, a 
sumptuous abode, and had stood unmoved during the earth- 
quake, which here, as in Caracas, destroyed no stone build- 
ing, but those only that were wholly or partly composed 
of pita J or adhesive earth. The lower floor was ocupied by 
some remnants of opulent families ; and one side of the patio 
was fallen in from the decay of the timbers exposed to the 
weather. A spacious saloon was entered from the usual 
broad stairs of two flights ; and the whole front of the house 
had an ample gallery, which overlooked those on the oppo- 
site side of the street, and the noble current of the Magdalena 
that washed their outermost walls. The river had but par- 
tially risen the day of our arrival at the Bodega ; that night it 
perceptibly rose above six feet in its spacious stream more 
than a mile wide on the rapid in front of our residence. 

Below the city and in sight another narrow rapid descends 
over a mass of large round stones; and above the town, the 
river Guali^ (pronounced Walli) a handsome stream of half 
a mile broad, descends at right angles into the Magdalena. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 581 

It is in the cove, formed at the junction of the two rivers, 
that the landing from the Bodega takes place — and, from the 
quality of the ferry boat, a precarious passage. 

There were two chambers at the extreme of the great sa- 
loon, which we occupied, and a spare room on the lobby 
received our baggage living and inanimate. 

We rested on the first of May, and on the second I present- 
ed my passport in ordinary to the assessor or deputy of the 
governor, or Juez politico^ this being a civil administration, 
though 1 found it rather uncivil ; for, notwithstanding my 
daily apphcations, through the sergeant, and, after his depar- 
ture, through my servant, I could obtain neither a boat, an 
answer, nor my passport, which I imprudently left in his 
hands ; I at length sent my passport from the minister of the 
'.nterior, demanding a compliance with its orders ; my ordi- 
nary passport was returned, and that of the government kept, 
promising, as had been promised every day preceding, that 
it would be attended to a la manana : — in the books, manana 
nicans to-morrow, or the next day ; but in the vernacular 
tongue of some persons in office, it may be to-morrow week, 
cr to-morrow month, or twelvemonth — -or never, just as it 
•i; the whim ; or, as in this case, it was the wantonness of the 
piblic agent ; and among those evils entailed by the pre- 
existing institutions, the usages of which remain, at once 
frDm the unsettled state consequent on the revolution, and 
the utter impracticability of at once reducing all the branches 
of government to a consistent and regular efficiency. 

All the institutions under the Spanish monarchy in Europe 
ard in America were venal ; every thing was purchaseable, 
and right itself could not be obtained without paying for it. 
In .he lower and remote branches of the administration, it 
continues in a very great measure so still. The government 
has laboured to reform and regenerate every thing in accor- 
dance with its liberal principles ; the main obstacles to suc- 
cess were, first, the interests of individuals in every district 



S8S VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

were to be reconciled, by appointments to public trusts ; then 
the resources of the government were sp hmited, that com- 
pensation could rarely be paid ; and it was connived at to 
compensate service by fees or perquisites ; which, whenever 
they are permitted to take the place of a regular salary, will 
always become a pretext for exaction, or, more properly, 
robbery — the worst species of robbery, committed under the 
show of institution. Habits, long educated habits, divest 
fraud of some portion of its immorality, inasmuch as its per- 
mission or sufferance, or sanction by authority, divests it of 
the first principle of criminality, that is, intention. 

At points such as the entrepot for the whole interior be- 
tween Quito and Bogota and Honda, the demand for trans- 
port is unceasing ; die necessities oi the case call upon the 
government to provide by the same means that transport by 
mules which is provided every where else. Champans and 
bogus are the sole means of navigation on the Magdalenj, 
and there is a rate not always arbitrary but by custom, whicii, 
like the tonnage of ships in naval ports, fluctuates with de- 
mand. The government has always the preference, but it i^ 
often a distributive preference. If public danger requires all 
the transport, it must go. If only a partial space be required! 
the owner of the champan or boga takes in his cargo at tte 
price he chooses to fix, and for whole cargoes ; and they aie 
not deficient on die Magdalena of that art by which prices 
are enhanced through reports of dangers and hazards, which, 
though the exaction of price can neither aggravate nor alle- 
viate, still operates without the forms of a charter, to produce 
all the benefits of a policy of insurance without a premium. 

The owner of a champan has an interest in standing well, 
or having a perfect understanding, or a joint interest with a 
Juez politico^ or the alcalde. If a government order comes 
for transport, and the officer obeys the order, he will not pay 
more than the government rate, and the owner cannot benefit 
by exacting from the necessities of the traveller a heavier 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 583 

sum. If the officer grants what the government bids him 
absolutely grant, he gets nothing more ; butii he disregards or 
evades the order, and postpones from day to day the promise, 
he makes every day the exigencies and the impatience of the 
traveller, shut up in such a comfortless place as Honda, and 
eager to prosecute his journey, motives for submitting to the 
exactions, and thus pays tribute to the public officer for his 
perfidy, and enables him to share with the owner of the cham- 
pan in one half of his exaction. 

The champan, derives its name from a very large tree 
of South America, named Champacada. They are built 
in all the great iijland rivers in much the same rude manner ; 
of massive timbers, principally of this species of cedar, the 
grain of which resembles the teak of India, is equally sus- 
ceptible of being worked by a sharp tool, as the teak or the 
mahogany ; and, like them, resists the decomposition or rot 
by water, and the attack of the worm, so as to endure time 
out of human recollection, when not destroyed by violence 
of any kind. They are built from 50 to 150 feet in length, 
and from four to twenty-six feet broad, both ends sharply 
curving to a timber head. The main timber of the bottom, 
which is always flat, is proportionably thick, and is usually one 
tree, from stem to stern ; when the champan is not very large, 
the whole often consists of only three trees, or the sides form- 
ed of one tree, attached by futtocks athwart what may be con- 
sidered as the bows and beam timbers, according to size, 
but the whole vessel is so solid and so buoyant, that it floats 
without any warping, like one solid mass of timber ; indeed 
the sides are seldom less than eight inches thick, and the 
champan usually floats with four or five feet above water un- 
laden, and seldom draws more than three or four feet with the 
heaviest loads. 

The lesser vessels, which are only log canoes of a larger size, 
scooped out and fashioned by rude labour, are composed of 
a single tree, from fifty to sixty or eighty feet in length. 



584 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

The cargoes of merchandize are stowed in the centre of 
all the boats ; lined with mats, and covered ; if there be 
separate cargoes, coarser mats or partitions separate them ; 
or if the commodities are cacao, coffee, cotton, tobacco, 
maize, hides, &c. they are separated. The habitable places for 
passengers are either behind or before the cargoes, or in ship 
phrase " fore and aft." The bow and stern are open, and 
the rest of the champan or boga is covered with a roof form- 
ed by stout saplins or wattles affixed within, on each side gun- 
wall and brought over so as to form an arch ; these saplins 
are necessarily stout, because it is upon their upper surface 
the bogas, or water men, stand when poling the vessel 
against the stream ; when descending it is their place of rest 
and repose, without hand-rail or rope to guard them from fal- 
ling over. The boga, canoe, or piragua, all mean the same 
thing, and boga signifies the boat as well as the boatman. 

Champans are manned according to their size ; and some 
will carry down a hundred and fifty loads of two hundred 
and fifty pounds each, for which the freight to Mompox on- 
ly is usually four dollars down, but has been enhanced to 
eight dollars ; the same weight up from eight to eleven, and 
from thence to fourteen dollars, was demanded when we 
were at Mompox ; owing to a report, which was impossible 
in itself, that Morales was at that time at the cienega of Santa 
Marta, on his way up the Magdalena. The owners of cham- 
pans knew very well that this report was false, and probably 
made it for the purpose-— it encreased their freight twenty- 
five percent. 

There is an artifice often played off on strangers ; after 
agreeing for the boat with the owner, and paying in advance, 
a new agreement is required for the bogas or watermen — - 
at so much per day — and then another is required for their 
subsistence, and as the passage up the Magdalena, from Ba- 
ranquilla, or from the Cienega of St. Marta, takes not less 
than two months ; and from the knavery of the patrons and 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 585 

the desertion, frauds, and vices of the hogas, through the 
want of police on the rivers, Honda is often not gained be- 
fore ten or twelve weeks. The expense, the irksomeness of 
life, the wretchedness of those who cannot subsist on coarse 
vianas, and many of the vexations that arise among a people 
so hardy, rude, and uncontrollable, should be prepared against 
with a resignation to suffer what is not avoidable, but with a 
firmness and equanimity always to resist what is improper or 
insolent in the Patron or his hogas ; and never to be without 
the evidence of preparedness, in the hand or belt, to repel or 
to punish any threatened outrage or wrong. The visible 
preparedness is always a salutary rule — he who travels 
with a good sword, and a pair of double barrelled pistols, 
which he takes care to discharge and reload occasionally, 
may pass up the Magdaiena \vithout having any evidence to 
suspect that the bogas are not as amiable as the Hindoo dan- 
dies ; whom in fact, in their amphibiousness, their gaiety, 
and proneness to singing and rowing by a cadence, they very 
much resemble. 

Floating in a boga of sixty feet down the Magdaiena, the 
Patron and his crew singing and responding, and the whited 
tints of the foliage in clustered groups, with the gleam of the 
moonbeam playing on the water, gave me for a few moments 
a kind of persuasion that carried me back thirty years, and 
placed me in a biidjerow, floating down the not more 
beautiful or splendid Ganges. The passage down from 
Honda to the debouch of the Magdaiena, in large cham- 
pans, is twenty days ; it might be accomplished in one 
half the time. It is an error of M. MoUien, and others, that 
the bogas of the Magdaiena are of African race ; there are no 
doubt some few of them. The people who occupy the sides 
of great rivers and sea coasts, in every country, are of d^irker 
complexion than those further inland. This is true to my 
personal knowledge of the Colombian coast and rivers, but 
it is also true of the coast of Malabar, Coromandel, and the 

74 



586 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

whole coast from thence by the outlets of the Ganges, t© 
Chittigong, Aracan, Assam, Pegu, and Malacca ; on all 
these coasts, the complexion of the inhabitants, near the sea 
coast, is much darker than the same race of people thirty 
miles inland, and much more fair as they depart from the 
lines of rivers and the sea. Thus it is that the Lascars who 
pass from India, by their colour lead to the notion that the 
Asiatics of India, the Burman empire, and the Malays, are all 
black. The boatmen or bogas of the Magdalena are darker 
in colour than those who live twenty miles from the Magda- 
lena. They are, for the most part, an unmixed native race ; 
but there are some few mixtures among them. I met and con- 
versed with some ; and the patron of the boat which carried 
us from Mompox to Barancas, who was himself what in the 
United States is called a half breed, or descendant from an 
Indian and Spanish stock, said there were few of the woolly- 
headed race on the river, but he pointed to one who was 
in the boga, and whose history I had from himself in the 
course of the night — which I shall subsequently notice. 



CHAPTER XXXVIII. 

Rapids of Magdalena — General Cordova^the passport — the embarcadero, &c. — 
Rio Perico — Guai'ico — Rio Negro — point for a road to Bogota — Buenavista — 
Rio Claro — Laguna de Palaguas — El Tigre — Nare — Garrupata — Multasputas 
—San Pablo — Badillas — splendidly rich and wide-spread country — traditions of 
river revolutions — union of the Cauca — Ocana — Morales — high flood — Re- 
gidor — Temalameque another Balbec — Rio Cresar — Penon and Banco— 
Mompox — a very important commercial position — hospitality — prosperity — 
industry — Senor Villele — Senor Guerra — recent European publications — 
leave Mompox in a boga — gold trade— reserve on the extent of it. 

The rapids of the Magdalena are spoken of by travellers, 
and, in some itineraries which I had procured, I found seven 
rapids set down, some of which are stated to be dangerous : 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 587 

I saw no rapid but two, one at Honda, which no boat can 
pass up or down in its present state ; a rapid two miles below, 
and a rapid in which I saw no danger where the bogas were 
experienced. 

After ten days' detention at Honda, by the neglect or 
wantonness of the officer whose duty it was to accelerate 
my departure according to the orders of his superiors, I 
found General Cordova, with whom I had been intimate at 
Bogota, had arrived at Honda, and waited on him ; he intro- 
duced me to the governor at once, who had been constantly 
represented absent by the assessor ; he promised me he 
would serve me a la manana — and he did so a la tnahana^ 
that is, never, I determined to demand my passport, which 
I could not obtain till the next dav ; meanwhile I had been 
applied to by an intermediary of the assessor, and owner 
of one of the boats, and we bargained for forty dollars to 
Mompox — my passport not appearing, I presented myself 
at the governor's house, hung up my hat, took a seat, 
and signified my intention to wait there until it was re- 
turned ; I had carried my writing utensils and some paper, 
and began to write in the saloon a letter to the minister of the 
interior — I had been thus occupied, when a little squinting 
civilian about five feet two approached, with a thousand pa- 
labraSi and presented my passport deluged in claret. As 
my own Spanish was not so idiomatical as that of my ser- 
vant, who had lived ten years in the country, and whom I kept 
with me to avoid misrepresentation, I made use of him to ex- 
press as strong as possible the sense I felt df his unbecoming 
conduct to me, and his disregard of the orders of his govern- 
ment. With perfect composure he bent one of his eyes on 
me, while the other kept George in view, and informed me 
that — George spoke bad Spanish — I was glad to find it ; and 
mustered enough of my best Spanish to tell him that the words 
George spoke were mine, and faithfully translated ; and that 
I should report his conduct to his superiors at Bogota. 



588 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

Whereupon I took French leave ; an officer followed me re- 
questing me to return, and that it would be obliging— I be- 
lieve that I left an impression as unfavourable as to my ob- 
stinacy, as I had given a previous example of ten days' pa- 
tience. General Cordova called on mc, offering passage in 
his boat as far as Nare, where he proposed to land, and that I 
might take it the rest of the way to Mompox ; but hearing 
that 1 had engaged a part of a boat, he sent me his compli- 
ments, wishing me a pleasant voyage, and sailed at five 
o'clock in the morning. 

We moved at half-past eleven, on the 10th of May, ha- 
ving our baggage transported on mules to the embarcadero, 
about a mile and half below the town, and at the foot of the 
second rapid. The itineraries which I possess disagree in 
relation to distances in the navigation, and it must be obvious 
that where the flow of the stream is unequal, as it must be 
where the channel is spacious or contracted, the time of pass- 
ing is not a proper medium for determining distance. The 
itineraries will be given in the appendix, with the measures as 
estimated by the writers, but for the accuracy of which I do 
pretend to decide, any more than for the measures of land. 
The only scientific measurement, that I saw in Colombia, 
was that of the pillars erected at every half league from Bo- 
gota to Facitativa, and these were measured geometrically, and 
combined with the measurement of elevation above the sea. 

We embarked, on a champan of middle size, perhaps 
eighty feet long, and about six broad ; the cargo occupied the 
centre space so as to allow about six feet for shade, and sleep- 
ing ; the roof would not admit of standing upright, and our 
trunks were stowed under us, so that, though we could nei- 
ther stand nor sit up, we could lie down. But here were my 
friend G. and myself, incommoded with the baggage bound for 
Mompox, of which we now began to discover the inconve- 
nience. George himself found no difficulty, " such fellows 
would find Rome any where ;" he dressed our food and dis- 



\ISIT TO COLOMBIA. 589 

appeared till another meal became necessary, and left it 
wholly to our politeness how to treat his baggage ; however, 
she aided in rendering our meals more comfortable, and be- 
sides dressing our chocolate, and making some excellent 
chicken soup, for which George, an old traveller, had pro- 
vided the best ingredients, we became reconciled to our con- 
dition and moved on. 

In the road to the embarcadero we passed the dry beds of 
two mountain streams, which sometimes render the road im- 
passable. The Guali, a beautiful stream, before noticed, is 
above the rapid, and rises in the paramo de Ruis, immedi- 
ately at the north-west side of Qtiindiii. Very little expense 
and labour would open a navigation between the handsome 
town of Mariquita on the Guali, and the rio Perico^ which 
is about a mile below Honda, and which is passed by a 
bridge, the principle of its construction is that of the resist- 
ance of two inclined planes. The earthquake had disturbed 
one of the stone butments of this bridge, the planes being well 
wrought timber, and it now stands with another inclination, 
so that one side of the planes is about eighteen inches higher 
than the other, and no pains have been taken to repair or 
restore it, which might be done in three hours by two good 
workmen, and half a dozen labourers. 

Just contiguous to the embarcadero is the Guarino, a 
much larger stream when full than the Guali, and has its rise 
in the same paramo north of Quindiu. 

The course now downwards is described as containing not 
less than seven dangerous passes, but I apprehend this must 
relate to the ascent, as the current is strong for more than 
twelve miles ; the course of the stream is due north ; at Le- 
dios it turns abruptly to a point south of east, and at the end 
of three miles vermiculates to the north-west by Conero, a 
village on the left bank, and thence north to Guarumo, 
twenty- seven miles on the right bank of the rio Pontona del 
Giierramoy falling in on the left side of the Magdalena, with 



590 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

a delta which conceals the stream when opposite to it. At 
the lower end of a lofty bank, on the left side, is a small vil- 
lage named Zeno, from which the main river has an eastern 
inclination of about eleven miles, when the rio JVegro^ a 
beautiful and navigable river, falls on the right side into the 
Magdalena : here is the proper point to commence a carriage 
road to Bogota, which is perfectly practicable at a moderate 
cost. 

This river Negro is not to be confounded with several 
others of the same name which descend from the Cordilleras 
into ibis vast valley ; the river Manda is its most southern 
branch, another nearer to Calambala, on the Manda; after a 
separate course of twelve to fifteen miles, they unite with 
the Mamuy and the Dulce, above Villetta, and it receives 
the Sobia, Veragua, Ptiion, and numerous smaller streams 
from the eastern ridges, taking a north-west course from the 
neighbourhood of Penon; after more than twenty miles gen- 
tle passage to the north-west, it receives the river of Guaduas 
at twenty miles from that town, and flowing along to the 
north, in keeping a parallel course thence with the Magda- 
lena, from its junction with the Guaduas; at the end of se- 
venty miles it joins the great river. I had occasion to inves- 
tigate the practicability of a carriage road between Bogota and 
Honda, at the request of some friends there, and took for 
mv rule of judgment, besides personal information, the con- 
stant characteristic of the mountains detached from the main 
chain, and the rise in a series of levels above the base ; the 
whole is cast into groupes, between which rivers every where 
find a passage to rivers still greater. From Bogota to rio Ne- 
gro there is a succession and continuity of flowing waters 
without any such impediments as would prevent a carriage 
road the whole route along their banks, and upon which 
wagons would not find a better road than lay between Bed- 
ford and Pittsburg thirty years ago, with no other materials 
than have made the Pittsburg road passable. The navigation 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 591 

up this river Negro, one of which or the other should obtain 
discriminative names from the government, is good ; a nar- 
row, not a very elevated mountain, separates the head wa- 
ters of the river Carari, from the line of the river Negro. 

On the left bank, directly fronting the descent of the Ne- 
gro, stands Buenavista, on the angle formed by the rio de 
la Miel, which descends from the paramos on the west side ; 
and the alluvion of the two rivers have formed a spacious 
bank opposite Curmanera on the right side, but which the 
rio Claro, and it is a beautiful stream, constantly washes away. 

The Magdalena, from the rio Ciaro, pursues a course 
slightly to the east of north more than fifty miles, but its 
course is broken into currents by several sand islands be- 
tween this place and the debouches of the rio Cocorna, which 
flows from the west, and the Laguna de Palaguas on the 
right side, below which the river doubles the breadth of its 
channel, and a long island divides it into two, the right of 
which is named Braso del Tigre, the other, more spacious, is 
yet more embarrassing, and though chosen on the ascent, 
the Tigre is best adapted for descending. We passed 
through this channel, and reached Nare that evening. 

Nare stands on a rank flat on the left bank, and the wa- 
ters of the rio Samana, which receives that of Guatape in its 
course, united with the rio Negro de Nare, wash the north- 
ern face of this platform of Nare, as they flow from west to 
east, and here join the Magdalena : these rivers afford com- 
munications for a great part of the populous province of An- 
tioquia. The fisheries here are abundant, and supply the 
surrounding country, and the place is a great entrepot. We 
obtained sufficiently commodious quarters, and hung up our 
hammocks. We passed the strait, or Estrecho de Carrares, 
btiiig twelve leagues west from the navigable waters ofCas- 
tare, inland, on the right side of the river. The navigation 
was difficult and tedious this day, or the bogas had some ob- 
ject in view in stopping short of the usual post at the points 



593 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

of Garrapata, or San Bartolome ; they suddenly changed 
their course about six o'clock, and ran into a cove where no 
dwelling was visible— they called the place Multasputas^ and 
as we had no power to prevail on them to proceed, we hung 
up our hammocks in some ranchos which were concealed by 
thickets of bamboo, and where we spent an unpleasant night, 
from the din of noise, yelhng, and coarse revelry. We pas- 
sed two lakes on the right, between which lay the road by 
Arocha to the Bodegas de Carrare, Piemarde Oro, Pe- 
non of Magdalena, and the rio Vitja, or Old River, on the 
right; and early on the morning of the 13th, we passed be- 
tween a number of beautiful islands, the river Carrare enter- 
ing the Magdalena from the south-east, fifteen miles below 
which, on the same side, the river Opon enters the Magda- 
lena, having a large lake at its debouche. 

The Miigdalena here bends to the west of north, thirty 
miles to St. Pablo, which we reached the same night, after 
passing Brusas, Bernusa, Barsanca, and Zonilla, on the left 
bank, along an angostura, or strait, called Channay, the island 
of Baldonado on our right, and on the left bank St. Pablo, a 
miserable place, which we reached when it was too dark 
to see, and left it before light enough returned. The river 
here is of great width, and separating into channels, forming 
numerous islands, covered with luxuriant vegetation. We 
passed Pita, a town on the right, Caretal and Paturjas on 
the left ; the arm of the river which flows between an island 
and the right bank obtains the name of rio Chingale, as an 
arm on the opposite side, ten miles lower down, has the 
name of rio Barranquilla. The town of Rosario is on the 
right bank opposite Barranquilla, and on the right bank ten 
miles lower, opposite the isla de Limon, is the handsome 
town of Badillos, where we stopped an hour, and obtained 
vegetables, and fruit, and milk, for which payment was re- 
fused, with an ingenuous earnestness that seemed to derive 
pleasure from bestowing. The Magdalena here divides into 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 593 

three branches, and the adjacent country thence to the Cau- 
ca ; Simitu being but twelve miles west, and Nichi twenty- 
eight further west, where the rio Nichi unites with the Cau- 
ca ; the sources of the Nichi, which rise in the mountains of 
Simitara, and which are barely discernible from the Magda- 
lena, is covered with the abundance of the richest climates, 
and a numerous population, counting within a circle the radii 
of which are ten miles, the towns of Cordero, Penanes, Na- 
ransal, San Pedro, Gumea, Sunta Ysabel, Margania, En- 
camafia, Saiiillo, and Sate, with Vera Cruz on the Cauca, 
being only sixteen miles west. 

The Magdalena, like the Ganges and other great rivers, 
has frequently abandoned its old channels and formed new ; 
the old dogas, who are often found good natured and com- 
municative, are as fond as men more civilized of displaying 
their knowledge ; and like the man to whom Robinson Cru- 
soe was the encyclopedia of historical adventure, the honest 
Boga findiJ, in the caprices and changes of the Magdalena, 
themes sufficient to exercise his memory, and display the su- 
periority of his knowledge over the race less curious or in- 
terested, who tug at the same paddle, or shove the champan 
by a pole like his own. The abandoned channels are fre- 
quently wholly closed after a length of time, others retain a 
shallow depth of water by the settlement of the deposited 
earth, or the transposition of whole rafts of floating trees, 
which by decay give way to succeeding floods, and thus 
restore the old channels, abandoning the more recent, to be 
again renewed and abandoned. In some places lagunes are 
formed by these accidents of flood ; and islands are detached 
by the waters forcing the rich loose soil. This point at 
Badillos, though the place is not itself otherwise of much 
importance, is that at which the waters of the Magdalena 
and the Cauca have created a sort of inland archipelago ; the 
two rivers cast abroad so many limbs which interlock, in a 
course of 140 miles from north to south, by 60 east and 

75 



594) VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

west. But the richness of the valleys on the right bank is 
equally remarkable and important, and, like the Sunderbunds 
of the Ganges, afford commercial navigation by the waters 
which descend from the Sierra of Ocafia, here only twenty 
miles by the road, from the Bodega that leads to the Magda- 
lena. Its ordinary channel of descent, is that by which we 
passed, that of Morales, the western branch ; the central, or 
Cano de Gualinasillo, is a narrow passage navigable by small 
vessels, and by large at high water, from the island of Morales : 
the town is on the west side of the island .about half way 
the descent. The right branch is by far the most ample, 
and is called, from its proximity, Braso de Ocana. 

The town of Cascajal is situated on the uppermost of the 
lakes, about six miles from the Braso de Ocana, and two 
roads ascend the mountain region from this place, by the 
south and north sides of the Sierra de Ocana, and unite on 
that beautiful table land. The lake. La Puerta^ or the national 
port of Ocaiia, is but ten miles lower than Cascajal ; but the 
town at that port, which has suffered by the war, must soon 
rise under the influence of the wealthy regions which sur- 
round it, and the facilities which it presents for intercourse, 
by a short and less tedious transit with the valleys of Tunja, 
Pamplona, Merida, and Maracaybo, and the ample and safe 
navigation from thence to the sea by the Magdalena. This 
place was contemplated to become the site of a central ci- 
ty for the residence of the national government ; the temper- 
ature, salubrity, the abundance of every natural production 
in its vicinity, point it out as a suitable scite for the capital 
of a commercial country ; and Ocana must become the centre 
of a great population, as soon as it shall be well known. 
Such is the imperfection of Alcedo's work, that Ocaiia with 
all its advantages is not even noticed. 

We reached Morales and halted there an hour. The 
bank at low water stands about fourteen feet above the sur- 
face of the stream ; we stept on shore from the gunnel of the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 695 

•champan, so high was the flood at this time ; we had seen 
the river rise seven feet in an hour at Honda, and in four 
hours fall to its previous level. The flood now trickled over 
the platform, and menaced to wash the church floor, which ap- 
peared to stand much in need of it. The population and the 
luxuriance of the vegetation, cacao, coffee, cotton, tobac- 
co, oranges, the delicious sweet bananas, and hedges of odo- 
riferous shrubs perfuming the air, while the people exhibit- 
ed almost nudity ; they were natives with little admixture, 
and, from the intensity of their dark complexion, must 
have been the descendants of the primitive inhabitants of the 
river side. They were kind and civil, shewed ease and 
confidence, without forwardness or fear, and if gaiety and 
abundance be tests of contentment and happiness, rich gar- 
ments appeared not to be requisite to assure at least what- 
ever of felicity may belong to limited knowledge. We paid, 
but they received with reluctance ; and though all we pro- 
cured did not amount to three reals, or thirty-seven and half 
cents, they insisted on adding to our sweet plantains, several 
bunches which they saw we liked, and a small rush basket 
of other fruit. 

We slept at Regidor on the left bank, and while the bogas 
dressed some fish, we had a regale of palm cocoa-nuts, and 
some chicha, which had a vinous smack resembling fresh 
cider. A small town, St. Andres, stands on the opposite 
side of the river ; we here found some stately trees covered 
with the bottle-shaped calabash, growing apparently wild, 
and nobody's property, they were so much more than enough 
for every body. A few miles below, on the right bank, the 
town of St. Basil occupies a point formed by the junction of 
the river Agualibres with the Magdalena ; ten miles lower, 
the site of the once opulent city of Temalameque, on the an- 
gle formed by the passage of the river of that name into the 
Magdalena, presents itself in the solitude of magnificent 
ruin ; this place was formerly of some considerable import- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ance, with a subordinate provincial jurisdiction, a place of 
great wealth ; its buildings, of stone, were blown up by the 
Spciniards. 

The Magdalena, from the open union of the several streams 
above Regidor, flows thence by Tamalameque, about nine 
miles, inclining west of north, when it winds off abruptly to 
the west for eleven miles, where an ancient channel of the 
river flows to the south-west by Pcnon on the right bank 
of the strait, and by Loba on the right bank of the old chan- 
nel : the Cienega of Sapatosa is the first of a chain, itself 
about eight miles diameter; a gut of a mile and a half pro- 
ceeding north- west unites it with the Cienega Pancaychi, 
and another strait or canal of six miles leads to the Cienega 
Adentro, which is about eighteen miles long, and there re- 
ceives the great river Ce^sar, and other tributary rivers from 
the north- west. Tamalamequillo, I suspect created out of the 
fugitives from the desolated city, is a snug little town on the 
lower debouche of Sapatosa, presents itself with a neat ap- 
pearance opposite the more ample and flourishing towns of 
Penon, and Banco, so named, probably from the elevated 
bank of ground upon which it stands ; it is a kind of custom- 
house, which overhauled us by a peragua with two men, 
one of whom appeared to think himself of some importance, 
though he was very civil. The river, from below Banco, 
continues in a broad and splendid sheet of water, like a sea 
of quicksilver, or like a China painting bright and deep tint- 
ed on the borders, glassy and burnished on the smooth sur- 
face of the scarcely moving mirror : the direction of the 
stream to the south-west is more than fifty miles ; some 
islands appear, and one particularly, opposite Guamal, twenty 
miles below Peiion, on the right bank, is about seven miles 
in length, and covered with luxuriant forests, as are indeed 
nearly all the banks of the river, on both sides, from Honda 
downward, where the hand of man has not yet opened their 
feosoms to the sun and cultivation. Chillon, Fernando, Mar- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 507 

garita, and Merchique, are small towns successively on the 
left bank, at seventeen, twelve, nine, and six miles above 
Mompox, which we reached at half past five on the evening 
of the 15th. 

Mompox in fact stands on an island of forty-eight miles in 
length, and averaging twelve miles in breadth. The water 
which bounds its south-west side, and which runs parallel 
with the main stream, issues into the Cauca, eighteen miles 
below Mompox, but a multitude of streams, and numerous 
prosperous towns, enrich and enliven the interior. Mompox, 
though my previously acquired information as to its import- 
ance was considerable, very much exceeded my expecta- 
tions ; I had expected to find a town inferior to Honda ; I 
found a city larger than San Carlos, Truxillo, or Pamplona ^ 
its streets better paved, and with good tiled footways every 
where, and broader than those of any I had seen in Colom- 
bia. The bank on which Mompox stands is steep, and 
fronted on the river by a stone wall of good masonry, with 
semi-embrasures and a parapet. The space between the 
parapet and the houses, also of stone, but in some places only 
from eight to ten feet. 

We had letters, but proposed seeking a house to lodge ; a 
gendeman of the place, Mr. Villel, seeing strangers, accost- 
ed us, and invited us to his house, to which he conducted us 
instantly, and his servants soon had our baggage in a few mo- 
ments placed in our chamber. Refreshments of the best kind 
were presented, and some excellent claret, of the flavour and 
exhilaration of which none can so w^ell estimate as those who 
who have travelled in a boga or a champan for a week. It 
was too late, and we were too much strangers, to look out 
that evening for the prosecution of our journey. Our ad- 
venture on the champan had closed here, and here, on land- 
ing, we saw for the first time our shipmates on the cham- 
pan, who, having the forecastle, and we the after cabin, were 
as effectually separated as if we were at the arctic and antarc- 



§98 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

tic regions, though only about fifty feet asunder ; and we 
ivere not a little surprized and pleased at the discovery now 
made for the first time, that the troublesome traveller who 
broke down so many mules to overtake us at Viletta, had 
been our fellow passenger, though we learned afterwards 
at Carthagena, that he had quarrelled with the eight or nine 
persons with whom he was accommodated in the fore births. 

Our hospitable host had ordered chocolate, good cakes, 
and some wine, and spent an hour with us, while our ham- 
mocks were preparing, and we were changing our linen, 
the first time since we left Honda. Means to bathe our feet 
were provided without asking, and obliging domestics per- 
formed the office with as much care as if it had been their 
daily habit to serve us for years. We spent a short time in 
the delightful air of the night, and retired about eleven to a 
luxurious repose. 

As my experience at Honda with the squinting civilian, 
had taught me not to depend too much upon official civility 
every where, I waited on the civil governor personally, and 
exhibiting my best passport, requested to be provided with a 
good boga for Barancas. Senor Guerra, the civil magistrate, 
was a contrast to the Honda magnifico, and besides he had 
an acquaintance with the world, of which he had seen some; 
he invited me to refresh and to dine ; I declined with can- 
dour, that I had a friend with me, and could not separate ; 
" but your friend must come also, said he, and do not go so 
soon." I felt obliged, and told him so, and having some wine 
I drank with him, and waited a little while till he made in- 
quiries how he could serve me ; on his return he smilingly 
said, " you must not take la manana in its common practical 
use," but he would see and assure me of a boga on the morn- 
ing. He presented me some London papers, only six weeks 
old, and the first numbers of a Spanish periodical work, pub- 
lished in London, in March, after perusing which I took my 
leave. Meanwhile our good host had, as I requested, bar- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 599 

gained for a boga, for the exclusive use of myself and friend, 
which he obtained. I was apprehensive, that if a champan 
or boga was provided by the public authorities, that we should 
perhaps be alongside that quarrelsome flibiistier, for such in 
fact he was ; for the same reason we determined to embark 
that night, and in fact had our baggage on board, and were 
afloat at ten on the night of the 16th of May. We had but 
just got under cover and afloat when a smart rain commenced, 
but the current required as yet no additional force ; we floated 
at the rate of about five miles an hour, and in the morning 
found the sweep of the flood arrested by the vast volume of 
the Cauca, which here appeared a stagnant pool, covered 
with eddies and floating vegetation, rising as it were above 
the now limpid Magdalena. 

Habit, from a peculiarity of disposition perhaps, or the 
early transitions I had made to difi'erent parts of the world, 
had enabled me not only to sleep at any hour of day or night, 
but to awake at any hour predetermined, and I only men- 
tion it, because I am perfectly satisfied that this habit may 
be acquired by any young man who has constancy enough 
to determine, and do as he determines. My friend G. was ex- 
actly of the same cast, so that watching was not difficult nor in- 
convenient. As soon as we had got into this *' dead sea," and 
the boga lost its motion^ I discovered that the patron, and his 
two assistant bogas in the forecastle, had instinctively com- 
mitted themselves and us to the caprice of the waters ; it was 
necessary to use some " ship logic''' to arouse them to duty ; 
the patron put the best face on it, laughed at his own somno- 
lency, complimented us on our watchfulness, and told us a 
story ; till, finding that the nipping air of the morning was 
acting upon our eyelids, he set up a song to the Virgin, with 
a good nasal twang, and followed it by a patriotic canta^ of 
which Bo-lee-vW was the fond theme. The name is pro- 
nounced in this way : the sounds Bol-or-var, are not heard, 



600 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

the bo is full, and the emphasis is on i as ee in lee^ and in the 
last syllable the a is but barely aspirated. 

Whoever will consult a good map, on a scalip not less than 
five miles to an inch, may form some idea of the fortunate 
position of the city of Mompox. For two centuries this place 
has been the centre of the gold trade, for all the valley b 
which unite their waters and their communications with the 
Cauca and Magdalena. It was originally an Indian settle- 
ment. In 1540, Jerome de Cruz made it an establishment 
or entrepot between the upper and lower waters, and in about 
seventy years afterwards, in the close of the reign of Philip 
II, when a new" ministry and a new system had given some 
momentary energy to the Spanish dependencies, Mompox be- 
came at once the channel of regular and rich commerce in the 
precious metals ; but as the principal outlet for an export more 
rich, which has never wholly ceased since, it has fluctuated 
with policy, war, and revolution. No place in Colombia, in 
the circuit which I made, exhibits so much prosperity and 
contentedness ; the only unhappiness I saw there was the 
result of excessive wealth, which almost every where too 
often makes man, who is not blessed by a generous heart, 
either a misanthrope or a sot. 

A stranger who passes the rectangled streets of Mompox 
at the dawn, hears the clink of the anvil on every side; every 
house he looks into has the forge and the crucible, the vice 
and the hammer, busy ; it is indeed a gentler sound than that 
of the coppersmith, but it seems as if all the goldsmiths of the 
earth had assembled at Mompox to work for a wager. At 
noon this clickclack is suspended ; the climate invites to rest, 
and they have made such good use of the balsamic air of the 
morning, that they have done enough ; they know how to live, 
they have the bath, and their style of living is better as to 
gusto than any native modes I had seen ; but between three 
and four the hammer is again at work, till the sun descends, 
as if to bid them dress in their best and go to the dance, where 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 601 

their feet and the fiddler's elbows rival the activity of the 
hammers in the morning. One would suppose there could 
not be gold enough in the universe to employ so many ham- 
mers. I learned a point of discretion on this subject; being 
curious about facts, and of course, where every body was 
hammering at gold, I happened to ask a shrewd goldsmith, 
— who was polite, inquisitive, and pleased himself as ready to 
please, — what the quantity of gold might be that was annually 
wrought at Mompox ? its purity from either river or side of 
the valley? and what proportion of coined silver was an equiva- 
lent for gold ? The sensible artisan smiled significantly, and I 
soon perceived I was inquiring into secrets not to be invaded. 
*' These are facts, Seiior," said he, " which nobody in Mom- 
pox knows !" I did not at once, from the double exigency of 
translating the words and combining them into sense, take 
the hint ; he relieved me ; " Come," said he, " Seiior, 
when you have made more proficiency in Spanish, I'll tell 
you why it is not our business to know any of the facts you 
inquire about." I asked no more questions about other men's 
business ; but the honest goldsmith ordered some very good 
fruit, and told me, I must be the American colonel whose 
daughter his daughters had visited a month ago, as I answered 
the description she gave them. 

M. Villel, at whose house we lodged, when he could not 
prevail on us to stay, placed in the hands of our servant a 
quantity of chocolate unknown to us, until we were about 
to breakfast below the confluence of the Cauca. Oar ser- 
vant George had disposed of his baggage at Mompox, and 
this was fortunate, for our boga was so narrow, that we two 
could not lie side by side on the split- cane bed^ upon which 
we spread our clothes, and we were obliged either to sleep and 
watch by turns, or to lie like the soldiers under the field eco- 
nomy of Marshal Saxe, or, in the soldier's phrase, " heads 
and points." 

76 



602 



CHAPTER XXXIX. 

The Magdalena, leaving Mompox — Pinto— Guayamal — Plato — Teneriffe—ac- 
count of its capture by General Cordova — anecdote of a negro militia soldier- 
numerous towns— lake of Marerica — Rio Chamillar — reappearance of the An- 
des — Valley Dupar — Torres — his estate of San Carlos — now a desert — reach 
Barranca Nueva — the digue or canal — Siepe — negroes brought from the West 
Indies — hapless condition — night adventures at Mahate— Arjona — pestiferous 
pool -exaction for passing it — foul enough for Cocytus or Styx — Charon's 
lieutenant — luxuriant forests — spacious opening of the road — Turbajo — beau- 
tiful elevation, handsome houses, broad streets — neatness and temperature de- 
lightful — the Montpellier of the provinces around — delightful route to Cartha- 
gena — cotton trees for hedges — village of Benavides — Ternera— see the Po- 
pa— meet my friend Major Brush — enter Carthagena by the left of San La- 
zaro — striking aspect of the military works — advantage of travelling with a 
mihtary title. 

The Magdalena, after leaving Mompox, flows for thirty 
miles in a south-west direction, when it stretches its broad 
bason nearly north for twelve miles to Pinto. An island of 
some extent, whose only inhabitants are monkies of a very- 
large growth, conceals the view of the town of St. Sebastian, 
on the remotest east bank ; thence to Pinto, which stands 
in front of the broad river, and seems to shut it up from all 
egress. There arc several towns on the right and left banks ; 
those on the right are Zeno, San Fernando, and Santa Ana ; 
those on the left are Talcagua, Naranja, and Tomacal. 

The river in front of Pinto again strikes off to the west 
seventeen miles ; the channels of the Cauca and Magdalena 
here uniting, their deposite forms an island west of Pinto, 
behind which are three little towns ; where, rushing to the 
right side, it leaves a longer island on the left, called Guay- 
amal. The river here takes a new direction, directly west, 
about eighteen miles to Plato, which is on the right bank, a 
place of some consequence. The towns contiguous to the 
river here are numerous, as the climate is delicious and the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 603 

landscape delightful. Several rivers fall in from the west, 
and the evidences of population and natural riches are every 
where conspicuous, on those beautiful but solitary and yet 
unappreciated waters. 

From Plato the river winds a little more to the west, and 
the great stream, which gives a circuitous navigation, is aban- 
doned, to follow a beautiful channel, which has cut oif part 
of the bank, and formed the island of Playatura ; it is about 
a quarter of a mile broad, and, though we passed it at mid- 
day, such was the loftiness of the forests, that the sunbeams 
were excluded from this charming canal. Emerging from 
this shade, the stream broke upon our left with added mag- 
nificence ; having gained the centre of the current, there stood 
upon our right a bold and rounded hill, with a splendid 
stretch of the river stealing to the north. 

I prevailed upon the patron^ who hud now become com- 
municative, to bear nearer to the right shore, and one of 
our bogas, who was the only one of African descent I had 
yet seen on the river, gave us an account of the capture of 
this place. On our passage from Mompox, as this poor 
fellow was not much better clad or provided for than the 
soldiers who have the honour to win battles for other men's 
glory, accidentally exposed his abdomen, which appeared as 
if it had been ripped open from^the left hip to beneath the 
right arm-pit ; and, more extraordinary, such had been the 
fact : unaware how the wound had been made, 1 enquired, 
and thus came to learn that he had been a slave, and, having 
taken up arms for Colombia, was one of the soldiers under 
the command of Colonel Cordova (since general of division, 
promoted on the field of Ayacucho) — he exposed his arm 
from beneath his blanket ; and that had also been wonderfully 
cured of a sabre wound. 

The Spaniards under Morales had occupied Teneriffe — 
the town stood on a bank, whose lowest termination on the 
river was about ten feet above the surface of the current ; a 



604 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

gradual slope of about 110 yards led to a more steep ascent, 
which terminated in the handsome shaped hill. The town 
stood in sloping terraces from the river, to nearly the sum- 
mit of this hill ; to the south, handsome fields of culture ; 
and to the north, haciendas, some in ruin, and some rebuild- 
ing, were clear to the sight. But the town itself was an utter 
wreck ; the havoc of artillery vyas as fresh as the day after 
the assault ; gavel ends lay in the places in which they had 
fallen ; the timbers of the roofs stood in all directions, as if 
an explosion took place a week before, and of all lengths 
and magnitudes, doors and windows gave every attitude of 
which ruin, and military ruin especially, is so ingenious in 
forming. 

The Spanish force which had ascended the Magdalena to 
this place, had seized on the position with consummate judg- 
ment. From its summit the stream was commanded above 
and below, and a fleet of twenty-seven stout fiecheras, with 
heavy brass artillery, and numerous river craft, enabled 
them to intercept every thing passing by water, which could 
pass only in sight of Teneriffe. The country on both sides 
abounded with rich agriculture, and no part of the republic 
has so many towns on a like space, composed of graziers or 
agriculturists, as this from the mouth of the Opon river, or 
the outlets of Ocaiia to tlie Digue of Nueva Barranca twen- 
ty-five miles below. The view of a military position al- 
ways excites curiosity. A work which presents only a flank, 
or a bastion to an adversary, and masks the rest, acts upon 
the ardour of action as if there were no more difficulty than 
was first seen, but where not only real works are to be over- 
come, but artificial means are so easily employed to give an 
appearance of reality and force, both in works and numbers, 
such a position, in capable hands, is doubly strengthened by 
actual and moral force. 

The force of the republicans, was selected by General 
Mariano Montilia, intendant of the department of Cartagena, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 605 

whose infirm state of health detained him below, but it was 
placed under a youth of twenty-two, who had already distin- 
guished himself in the field. Colonel Cordova had eleven Jie- 
cheras, with guns of different calibre, eighteen champans of the 
largest size, well manned with the best bogas that could be 
collected on the river between Mompox, Cartagena, and 
Santa Marta, and some of the most expert pilots of the 
coast, accustomed to boisterous seas and storms, and to 
whom danger was temperamental. There was no cove nor 
indent in front of Teneriffe, and the sides of the place above 
and below were so encumbered with vegetation as to forbid 
an attack on either quarter, which would leave the Spanish 
flotilla to act at the same time with the land force ; a false step 
of one or the other, might be fatal to all. Cordova determin- 
ed to move upon the Spanish flotilla, board, and attack it at 
its anchorage ; having disposed of half of his troops in 
champans, in the Cana de Plato, and placed row boats to 
cover the outer stream, he moved up the left bank before 
dawn, so as to glide down with the current at the first 
glimpse of day ; his division in the canal was to move at 
the sound of the first gun. The first gun was, in fact, a sig- 
nal from the first Jeluchaf and the whole line of Cordova's 
flotilla came in contact, boat with boat, at the same instant. 
Cordova, himself, was the first on board the leading flechera 
of the Spaniards. The batteries on shore could not now act, 
on account of the position of their own flotilla — the cham- 
pans with the troops had not yet approached, but they were 
in view, spread across the river, here about three miles 
broad. Cordova seized and carried off* every armed vessel 
of the Spaniards ; some smaller craft were upset, and the 
Spanish troops who could swim, sought to escape by water, 
but many perished in the attempt. Cordova drew off" the 
captured flotilla and his own, and taking a position a few 
miles above, distributed his force on the captured feluchas, 
manned them with the best riflemen, from his reserved cham- 



606 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

pans, and placed such craft as were not required for actual 
service, on the left bank within signal distance. 

No time was lost — the Spaniards had not yet recovered 
from their confusion, when a heavy concentric fire, from all 
the feluchas, now thirty eight in number, opened upon the 
Spanish troops which lined the beach ; they retired within 
the town, which being constructed wholly of fragile materi- 
als, pita walls being even few, or necessary in that climate, 
the fire was extended to the town ; and so effectually as to 
exhibit a scene of disorder as distinct to the assailants as 
their own squadron. The signal was given to land, and 
Cordova with his staff was on the beach, the flotilla was ar- 
ranged into two squadrons, above and below the town, and 
then commenced a conflict the most sanguinary ; it was not 
the action of manoeuvres of columns and battalions, but of 
detachments and squads, and of individuals hand to hand. 
The honest boga here displayed the horrible scar on his arm ; 
he had belonged to a militia company, each of whom had 
selected some man for combat ; a Spaniard selected him, 
and the sabre wound on his arm prostrated him ; while 
down, another assailant, with a large cuchillo, ript open his 
bowels and left him ; what followed he knew not, till he 
found himself in a ruined rancho^ some women of the coun- 
try about him ; the bowels which had protruded through 
the wound had been replaced, the sides of the wound closed, 
his body bandaged, and vegetable cataplasms applied ; his 
arm was treated in the same way ; and " here I am," said 
he, with an emotion of laughter, which seemed to express 
the exultation of gratitude and delight. 

The place was taken, and the whole Of the stores the Spa- 
niards had brought — and many prisoners ; the Spanish force 
never after appeared in the Magdalena. Teneriff'e is in 9° 
22' N. lat. and 74° 46' W. long. 

The country east and west of Teneriffe, appears to be the 
best adapted for settlemcilt of any part of the repubhc, for 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 607 

an agricultural and commercial people. It is indeed already 
more populous than I had anticipated. The peninsula, 
as it may be considered, is formed on the east side by the 
Magdalena:, and on the west by the Gulf of Tolu, and no 
where fifty miles across ; many navigable rivers have their 
sources in the very depressed hills that are intermediate, so 
as to afford portages not more than seven, five, and thre6 
miles; and a vast contraband has been carried on froni 
those waters from the first settlement to the present day. 
Were it not for this circumstance, the number of towns 
which every where garnish the banks could not be account-! 
ed for. They embellish the landscape by day, and by night 
you have not lost the lively notes of one fandango, before, 
those of another are blended with them, exciting lively 
pleasure, as the boat floats without noise or impulse on the 
tranquil surface of this apparently motionless mirror. BeloW 
Plato, on the right bank, I counted thirteen towns, with 
large intervals of pasture or cultivated lands, the largest o^ 
which were Purgatoria and Santa Cruz. On the left bank 
St. Tomas, Carcajal, Seton, Guatima, and the island of the 
same name, St. Francisco, Zambrano, and below the strait 
of Teneriffe also, on the left side, St. Aquinin, where the 
river bends to the north-east ; Noverio, on the point formed 
by the entrance of the Cuerrey from the west, and Neverita, 
on the left side of its debouche. The great lake of Manrica, 
twenty-two miles from north to south, and six miles east 
and west, is on the east side of the Magdalena, its south ex- 
tremity being due east from Teneriffe eleven miles. It re- 
ceives the waters of the Chamillar from the east, and numer- 
ous other streams, and discharges them by two channels into 
the Magdalena, the most southern eight miles below Tene- 
riffe, and the northern four miles lower down, the interme- 
diate land extending to the lake nine miles from the river. 

The mountains of the great chain west and east, which, 
after leaving Nare, very soon disappear altogether, except- 



608 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

ing two pyramidal clumps of rocks, which appear to block 
up the channel in the passage to Mompox, are not seen but 
in questionable shapes on the right and the left, till in sight 
of TenerifFe ; the indistinct but unvarying line of dark blue 
shade mixing with the clouds of evening, show the Sierra 
of Santa Marta ; but below, and nearer, the morning lights 
mark lower ranges, and, still lower, and more near, green 
and undulating. I looked towards these vine- covered hills 
and once gay regions, whose north bound marks the valley 
Dupar, with a mixture of delight and sorrow. I had before 
me the map traced by the hand of the late Manuel Trux- 
Ulo y Torres, first minister of the Colombian Republic to 
the United States. His former estate — his residence— the 
scenes of his married years, and the birth-place of his child, 
a daughter whose death was one of the arrows which quick- 
ened the current of life; here he had, by his own mild, kind, 
and consummate temper, redeemed the Indian of the for- 
est, and formed a native population, mild, industrious, in- 
genious, and, as he himself said, the best gardeners and cul- 
tivators in the world ; here he had founded ?i new little world 
of his own — the land was a gift from Charles IV. of Spain, 
on the presentation of the Viceroy, Archbishop Gongara ; 
here he married, and here he often said he ought to have 
lived and died — but he was called to supply diflferent sta- 
tions ad hiterim, upon the removal or resignation of intend- 
ants or others, and on confidential commissions at Santa 
Marta, Cartagena, La Hacha, and frequently at Bogota and 
Tunja. His education, and the force of his intellectual and 
moral principles, made him a friend of his species, and of 
human liberty. General Narifiho was the last of a band, of 
which Torres was also one, who had, with the early dawn of 
the revolution of North America, prepared the way for that 
of the South — which he just lived, after thirty-four years of 
exile, to see recognized as independent, and, at the mo- 
ment when all his labours were consummated, to close his 
living career. He was among those who were ordered to 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 609 

be seized, imprisoned, and sent to Europe, but he was too 
much beloved, wherever he had authority, jiot to have friends : 
his escape was connived at ; and, after reaching with his 
funds an island of the West Indies, where he remained 
some time, he removed to Philadelphia, where he lived in 
various degrees of good and evil fortune 4;o his death. He 
had entrusted his funds, in order that they should produce a 
respectable subsistence without waste, to persons in trade ; he 
was fortunate sometimes in the adventures, but in others was 
defrauded by those to whom he had committed them ; by one 
person, since deceased, he lost 70,000 dollars — it was his 
all. He had occasional remittances from his wife while she 
lived; but the information communicated by Yrujo and 
Onis, of his zeal in the revolt of South America, and the 
efforts he was making to furnish the patriots wiih supplies, 
caused his estate at San Carlos to be confiscated a short time 
after the death of his last living ties. 

The hacienda of St. Carlos was not more than sixty miles 
distance, I was told ; but what should I see there ? for Torres 
was no more, his ashes slept in the cemetery of St. Mary's, 
Philadelphia ; and what gratification could be derived from 
seeing the desolation that followed confiscation. I enquired; 
and learned there was not a vestige of a habitation : the forests 
which he had felled, and the gardens laid out and cultivated 
under his own eye, in wliich were collected and collecting 
all the riches of the botanical regions ; the avenues of cotton 
trees and oranges, the groves of foreign firs on the lofty 
peaks, and the palms in the valleys, had lost their order and 
their disposition : the cotton tree sheds its pods in such 
profusion as to diminish into dwarfs, and the orange had 
become bitter and deformed, as if in anger or despair : the 
poor Indian too had lost his earthly providence ; and, when his 
race was run, the progeny who followed became like their pro- 
genitors, ignorant, indocile, and wild, little more rational than 
the monkeys which gamboled on the lofty branches of the. 

77 



610 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

champaca^ or the mountain cedar. A wilderness was to be 
seen on all sides ; tliere was no charm left to replace the 
paradise that had been created by my friend : I did not go ; 
I could not but cast an eye to the hills, which the bright 
moon revealed ; and when we reached Barrancas about three 
in the morning of the 18th, I preferred going to sleep for a 
couple of hours, to escape the feelings which perhaps were 
the more acute from the irritation of watching and keeping 
the watermen awake and at their oars. 

Our baggage was transferred to the rocky bank of the 
river, and repeated messages to the alcalde were without suc- 
cess. No passport was effective for him ; the plain ordinary 
passport was of equal value with him as a command, as that 
from the minister of the interior ; for he was between seven 
and eight hundred miles off; a lawyer with a heavy fee en- 
gaged in a technical discrimination, could not be more in- 
genious in discovering the meaning and signification of 
words, etymologic, metaphoric, paraphrastic, and any thing 
but positive or direct. Two interpretations, different from each 
other, had already been given of the passport ; it was left for 
the httle alcalde of Barrancas Nueva, to find out a third; and 
this was in fact to be explained after all by employing one 
mule more than we wanted ; and without which, we could 
not budge from this same rocky mound of ferruginous trap ; 
instead, therefore, of six we were obliged to take seven 
mules ; and, instead of three dollars, the usual price, we were 
obliged to pay four dollars for each mule ; and it was eleven 
o'clock of the forenoon before we could escape over the 
steps of the trap ridge ; from this worst trap of all, a profli- 
gate alcalde, who wore by his side a sword stolen from an 
officer who had travelled that route, and which my servant 
now recognised at his side, and as the property of his former 
master ; being reproached, and this sword pointed at, he re- 
plied only by an exulting contortion, neither grin nor smile, 
and yet designed to be both. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 611 

Before we reached this place, we passed Palmas, Palma- 
nito, Cascali, Buenavista, Yucal, and Barrancas Viejo, or 
Old Barrancas, on the left side, and immediately above New 
Baranca. On the right side Heredia and Ferrara. 

The town of Barrancas Nueva is situated on the Mag- 
dalena, here flowing from south to north, on its east face ; 
a breach of the river, as the name signifies, overflowing at the 
foot of the mound of ferruginous trap rock, appears to have 
made a natural inlet or communication with the interior lower 
ground to the west side of the peninsula ; uniting the wa- 
ters which enter the same channels with the lake and harbour 
of Cartagena, which are not more than twenty five miles due 
west of Barrancas Nueva ; but the currents when united 
taking a direction from Barrancas south-west thirty miles, 
and from Sinorin on the west, in a north-east direction, thirty 
miles, give it a course of an angular form, which makes its 
meanderings more than sixty-four miles. This breach of the 
waters is the scite of what has been called the Digue, or Cano 
del Barrancas. The Spanish government had authorised the 
application of much ill-directed labour, and great expense, 
intending to give to this ditch the advantage of a free and 
ample navigable communication with the west side, so as to 
draw through this channel the commodities which usually 
passed down to Barranquilla, eighty miles below, or through 
the canal de Renagado into the Cienega of Santa Marta, a 
hundred and twenty miles to the north-east. 

The work was placed in bad hands; and undertaken to be 
executed by persons who either xlid not understand what 
should be done, or, if they did, perfidiously neglected to do 
it. The great object should have been to obtain a free cur- 
rent from either side. The Magdalena is always sufficiently 
elevated to carry a powerful stream by its own force through 
this channel, had the means been taken to profit by its cur- 
rent; at the mouth of the Digue nothing more was required 
than to deepen the inward channel between the two exterior 



612 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

waters before the flood was admitted at either side on the line 
of the natural run of water; which would have afforded, with 
the plains arid handsome hills between which it runs, ample 
space to take levels. To force the Magdalena to pay tribute 
and drive the current, an oblique section cut from the upper 
rocky angle of Barrancas would afford materials to form a pier 
or mound on its lower side, projecting in an angle of 45° to 
50° to the current of the river, and thus carrying as much of 
its current as experience might speedily determine to be ne- 
cessary intp the Digue or canal. 

At present the mouth of the Digue is employed as a horse- 
pond ; a hundred and fifty yards from the river it is dry, 
and when we reached it on our inland route beyond Arjona 
about thirty miles, it was a green and turbid pool, the stench 
of which affected the senses at half a mile distance. 

In leaving Barrancas, our course to the south-west lay over 
the stairs of brown granulate trap, for two miles, when we 
descended into a broken, but rich, verdant, and beautiful 
country ; this way, however, was without living waters, of 
which the heat made us very sensible, and by which we were 
very much more affected than in any part of our long 
journey. We reached a hacienda of good structure of the 
West India style about two o'clock, which we approached 
through open fields of great extent, cleared and abounding 
with cattle ; the house stood on an elevation with its double 
range of verandah on its east front. The owner, it seems, was 
absent ; the place is called Siepe^ and the agriculture sugar. 
The owner was from home, and the house in charge of a tall 
well-shaped negro -overseer. We determined to take refuge 
in the veranda till the sun's heat abated, and immediately 
put our mules to graze, and hung up our hammocks, while 
our cook collected whatever was to be had in the village of 
huts upon an adjacent bank, whose front was to the north. 
A negro- man from these huts, invited our attention by the 
proffer of his services, which he tendered in the dialect of the 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 613 

British West Indies, and made use of the disposition in 
which he found us, to tell us his story — he was a native of 
Africa, and carried young to an island of the West Indies, 
where he was as happy, he said, as a man could be who was 
a slave; he thought his condition bad there, but here he 
thought his former state good by comparison ; his age did 
not give him the benefit of the republican law, and his mas- 
ter, who had some years ago under the Spanish rule trans- 
ported himself and sixty others from the West Indies, was 
seldom there ; and their hard fortune was to have one of 
their own countrymen and colour as his overseer ; he had, 
he said, a wife and several children, who would be free — but 
for himself, he thought every hour of his life a misery, of 
which he said he was tired — " why do I toil ? — to me this 
plantation is as the whole world — and nothing to hope !" 

The appearance of the overseer, whose visage, out of hear- 
ing, seemed to say he knew the sad story — put the poor 
story-teller in tribulation, from which I rescued him by an 
affectation of dissatisfaction, telling him to go about his bu- 
siness, we wanted nothing — his wife, however, told us after- 
wards, he understood us, and sent some fine bananas, and 
a couple of delicious melons, for which we paid in some of 
the small silver change of the country that was now no longer 
of use to us, but was a treasure to the poor girl, who looked 
doubting at the six or seven bits on her hand — then towards 
her husband, holding her open hand towards him — and then 
looking in our faces, as if to say " Is it possible you mean to 
give me all this?" — no empress ever felt such sensations with 
the wealth of conquered nations at her feet. We left Siepe at 
half-past six o'clock, P. M. and at half-past nine reached 
Mahate. Though this route is much travelled, the mule- 
teers diverge into the forests of bamboo and lofty timbers. 
The shape of a road appears at some openings, but it is a mere 
ditch, which contains stagnant waters offensive to the senses ; 
the part which represents the road is usually a pool, there 



614! VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

having been neither sagacity nor skill to raise the centre even, 
with the materials excavated from the sides; by which 
means that which was intended to be marked for a commo- 
dious and clear road, is for miles, between Barrancas and 
Turbaco, a pestiferous slough of putrescent water, rank with 
decomposed vegetation. 

The character of our muleteers we had anticipated from 
the character of the alcalde at Barrancas. On the road some 
of their friends overtook them, and they kindly afforded them 
each a ride on those mules which the alcalde told us would 
be so overburdened with our baggage, that we were obliged 
to hire one extraordinary. They marched us to the alcalde 
of Mahate on our arrival, and having talked to each other 
aside, the alcalde's deputy, answering to our constable of 
police, led the way and towards his own house, which, besides 
every interior visible sign of dirt and unsavory smells, was 
in such a climate as promising of comfort as the orlop deck 
of a ship under the line. I declined entrance, and required 
better accommodations, to his very great amusement, and not 
a little to mine ; for as, in such unhelpable cases, it is best to 
call upon courage for good humour, and moreover obtain an 
advantage by not being angry, I thus disappointed him who 
endeavoured to cheat and vex me too. I ordered all our cara- 
van to the right about, and determined either to sleep in the 
street, or go to the adjacent forest ; a house with a veranda or 
corridor in front presenting itself, I knocked and asked per- 
mission to hang our hammocks inside the corridor ; but our 
disappointed minister of police loudly protested to the person 
inside, we should have no room there, as we had refused the 
use of his house — in a village, the constable is not a small cha- 
racter — the woman knew it. Mahate had been conflagrated, 
as I learned from a lady of the place, about six months before, 
by a sunbeam ; and few houses had escaped ; many were there- 
fore barely roofed and open at the sides. It resembled the Bo- 
dega at Honda ; but, as it belonged to somebody, and I had 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 615 

resolved not to be tricked out of a lodging by this local mi- 
nister of malignity, I entered close to the rear, where I found 
some respectable-looking females, and feeling as I always 
feel at the sight of agreeable women, I addressed them as 
they should be addressed, beautiful or ugly, with courtesy — 
said I was a traveller, and wanted only the permission to 
hang up my hammock in the unfinished house ; they all 
rose — it was granted as soon as spoken, and any thing in 
the house was perfectly at the disposal of the Sefior. I asked 
for some milk, only to have the pleasure of paying for it, 
but there was none to be had at that late hour ; some fruit 
they produced in a neat basket on the instant, but no 
payment would be received ; it was a sufficient pleasure 
that they were acceptable, and without having asked for wa- 
ter, a handsome Lancashire pitcher made its appearance with 
water, which was so cool and fine, that it seemed to have 
passed through an ice filtre. 

Our hammocks were soon up, and, by means of certain 
bamboos and other apparatus of rancheria architecture, we 
had formed our lines of contravallation and circumvallation, 
and lodged under the same roof with our mules. We were 
about to cast away all our cares, when the minister of mis- 
chief appeared jabbering in a villanous style ; but there was 
no doing any thing with him in the way of talking, for the 
parrots at Merida were gentle of discourse compared with 
him. A pair of pistols happened to be produced, and being 
unloaded, a priming from a cartridge in the holster of the 
saddle offered me an opportunity of making a flash in the 
pan ; if a culverin had exploded, the effect could not have 
been better ; how he went off I can only conjecture, for we 
saw nor heard of him any more. A better lodging-place 
could not have been selected for the liberator had he been 
there ; and, no doubt, the deputy alcalde, who had calcu- 
lated on making only perhaps half a dozen reals, and took it 
to heart that we should seek our own comfort, would have 



616 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

been mortified more, if he knew that the good lady had sent 
us a bottle of good sweet wine before we went to sleep, and 
that we slept as soundly as good health fatigued is apt to do. 
We resolved to profit of our past day's scorching, to be 
up and moving before the sun's appearance, and pushed on 
boldly over flat Bengal-like plains surrounded by palms and 
plantains, bamboos, and the clatter of flocks of paroqueets. 
No halting place presenting itself till half past ten o'clock, 
when we reached Arjona, a very poor place, and according 
to appearance has a considerable dependance on smuggling. 
A slight rain had commenced, and seeing a sentinel on post 
at a spacious gate, I rode up, and aware that military men 
respect superior orders, called for the officer of the guard, 
who made his appearance ; a fine young man, who caused 
our mules to be placed under shelter, and tendered any ser- 
vices. My hammock was hung up in the guard- room, and 
as more than seven hours ride had sharpened our appetites, 
we had our chocolate, and some fine fruit of the place. The 
young officer was intelligent and inquisitive, and I was not 
backward to say all I could to contribute information, such 
as I believed to be new to him, and we parted with a good 
opinion of each other at three o'clock. A servant of the ofii- 
cer, one of those singularities which all countries and wars 
produce, during our halt, amused and obliged us, and nar- 
rated his adventures with extreme humour; whether real or 
invented was not material, they produced the effect intended; 
he was another Guzman (TAlfarache, according to his own 
narration ; he made us laugh ; and he discovered, that all men 
approaching the sea- coast for foreign countries, must have 
little things half worn of no value to them, but which 
might be useful to poor fellows who remain in the country, 
and had no money to buy better. He saw we were moved 
to merriment, and archly asked, " if he had not hit the bull 
in the eye?" — -We gave him some half- worn-out shoes, a 
broken-elbowed jacket or two, and some other things, which, 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 617 

being of no value to us, he said would, by what he could 
wear and what he could sell, set him up for a month or two. 

We had to pass the digue or canal, in our route of the 
morning ; there is but a very slight descent to its course ; 
the appearance of the water was a foul green, and the stench 
was pestilential ; a toll had been established at this place, at 
the period when it was proposed to be improved. A person, 
who might well have passed for a deputy of Charon, appear- 
ed in a canoe, which, though adapted to the transport of 
another individual, made way through this foul Cocytus or 
Styx, — for of both it bore resemblance, — with much diffi- 
culty, stirring up the filth and mud through which it 
pushed. Our muleteers appeared loath to pass before us, 
but our servant George, who had travelled that way often, 
plunged into the pool, and crossed without wetting the girths 
of his mule, and we followed. Poor Charon's deputy was 
disconsolate ; he demanded two reals for each mule, and as 
much for each passenger. I gave him two reals. Death 
seemed to have taken the guage of his existence, yet, on cros- 
sing, in a cottage, on the very verge of this pestiferous pool, 
we found his wife, lovely as the daughter of Oceanus, who as- 
sisted Jupiter in his war with the Titans, a fine woman, in 
perfect bloom of life, not attended by Hydra^ but with a little 
Cupid at her bosom, in all the roundness and floridity of 
health. She had a little of the Styx in her tongue at least, for 
she belabored us with that weapon with as much angry 
energy, as the daughter of Oceanus had berated the chief of 
gods and men. 

We disappeared in the forests, which led along the north 
margin of the digue for two milts, where it presents a bason of 
three hundred yards in breadth, the whole length of the vision, 
but stagnant and offensive. This is susceptible of being made 
a canal of very great importance, but the levying of a toll 
upon passengers and merchandize, where no manner of 
service is rendered, ought not to have survived the alcavala ; 

78 



618 VISIT TO COLOMBIA, 

it is indeed a reproach to the government that permits it, and 
the greater reproach from the ofFensiveness of the passage, 
for riding or wading across, which the passenger has to pay. 
The triviality of the imposition matters not, the levy is a 
tolerated fraud, which may be pleaded in precedent for any 
other exaction. 

The road after leaving Arjona, and thence to Ttirbaco, 
was throughout good. It led through devious ways and 
very deep forests, parts of which had been recently felled on 
each side of the road for several miles before ascending the 
ridge that leads to Turbaco. We entered this delightful 
town about five o'clock, by a gentle ascent, and found the 
height, broad and sloping, covered with a delicate green 
turf above the summits of the surrounding forests, which fil- 
led the foot of the high ground in every direction. The 
place was laid out in spacious streets of forty feet broad, as 
usual intersected at right angles. The houses were not 
Continuous, though on the line of the street — all of one sto- 
ry, but that lofty and well thatched- — having a broad veran- 
dah in front, to which it was necessary to ascend one or two 
steps from the street. The alcalde here was an obliging 
man, he rode up from the extreme end of the town to meet 
us, and conducted us to a commodious house, left a servant 
to provide us whatever we stood in need of, and who obtained 
for us good wheaten bread and fresh milk. This delightful 
town of Turbaco is about fifteen or sixteen miles from Car- 
tagena, and is occupied by about a hundred and fifty com- 
modious houses of one story, neat and clean within and 
without, and the inhabitants polished, courteous, and obli- 
ging. Many families of Cartagena have establishments 
here, to which they retire at the warm season of the year, 
or at other times, to recreate or to recruit health. This place 
is said to have, at one period, had a population of 200,000 
Indians — indeed the elevated ground would admit of 5000 
houses without incommoding any — and with spacious gar- 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 619 

den and pasture room for all that is necessary to human 
comfort ; and the most delicious springs are every where 
around. We had heard of Los Folcanitos of Turbaco, 
which are at five miles distance from this place, and on 
ground of greater elevation. In a swamp of some extent, 
upon this high ground, several irregular hillocks rise to the 
height of thirty or forty feet, conical in form, and represent- 
ed as having a bason at the summit filled with water, which 
sends forth small flashes of inflamed gas, at unequal intervals. 
We had not time to see and speak for ourselves of these 
Volcanitos ; the stories we heard are not such as we could 
warrant ; and what is here given is only from the casual in- 
formation of others. 

Turbaco is memorable in the history of this part of the 
country in different ages. It was here that Alonzo Ojeda, 
inU610, put the Indians to the rout. Heredia, another Span- 
ish commander, fought some battles here, and burnt the city 
to the ground, since which time the place has been aban- 
doned by the natives. Here Morillo fixed his head-quarters 
on 11th June, 1815, and attacked La Popa defended by Col. 
Soublette; here it was that Bolivar established his head 
quarters first, when the federal spirit which set the provinces 
in hostility to each other, induced Castillo to refuse co-opera- 
tion with Bolivar ; here it was, that while Morillo was alluring 
him by a truce and a compromise, Bolivar prepared the way 
for the final subjection of Cartagena. 

On the 20th of May, before dawn, we were on our route 
to Cartagena ; the night was cool and delightful, and the 
line a continued descent, but very gradual. Much more 
labour has been bestowed in rendering this passage com- 
modious than any I had seen. The hills, where they pre- 
sented inequalities, have been cut down, to pursue the incli- 
nation of the line in a graduation uniform and regular. But, 
like all things begun by the Spaniards, they are still undone, 
or only half done : this road, however, admits of a wheel 
carriage all the way, but there are some parts which will 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

admit no more than one. The only wheel carriages in the 
republic, are a few heavy-built machines, called volantes^ 
with heavy shafts and bodies ; but which will disappear, 
and their place be supplied throughout the republic, when- 
ever the government begins to execute the principles in 
which they concurred in 1823. Roads alone are now the 
desiderata of the republic. With good roads its commerce 
would quadruple every year, for a century of years, the pro- 
duct of the year preceding. The world is still insensible of 
the resources of Colombia. 

We passed the village of Benavides amidst hedges of cot- 
ton-trees, whose ripe and unpicked fleeces were flaring in the 
breeze, and fringing the flowering shrubs with every tint and 
hue. The village of Ternera, on our right still farther on, had 
something of the appearance of a military hamlet, such as are 
every where seen adjacent to large garrisons ; where the old 
veteran finds a nurse, the idler a lurking place ; whence the 
morning's parade of the garrison, and the Sunday inspection, 
exhibits the handy-work of soap and starch, and the smooth- 
ing iron of the village washerwomen, whom we could discern 
with their elbows in the suds narrating the battles of their 
lovers, or chaunting an eulogistic canta or an aria on Bolivar. 

As my family had been here some time, old friends were 
on the watch, as we descended the hill from which the sea 
and the Popa of Carthagena first broke upon us, and finally 
the exquisite picture of the city, its splendid bason of Tosca, 
and the crowd of ships and objects which occupy the space 
of vision all around. The figure I presented in a black silk 
coat, a broad-leafed hat of native manufacture, which I had 
worn daily on the road since I left Caracas, military boots, 
and linen very much in need of the laundress, whose snowy 
handy-works I had but just past. My friend Major Brush 
scarcely recognised my face under the the painting of sun- 
shine and the growth of beard. We entered this justly ce- 
lebrated and beautiful city, and I found my family perfectly 
at home. 



VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 621 

The entrance to Cartagena leaves the celebrated mountain 
called La Popa on the right ; and about midway between La 
Popa and the east face of the works, is St. Lazare, a low 
hill, on which was erected originally an hospital, and more 
recently a military work, which I understood to be called the 
castle of St. Philip ; it was originally left unoccupied, but it 
was in time found to command the entire rear of Cartagena ; 
and is now rendered very strong. The face of Cartagena as 
approached on this side is by much the most masterly part of 
the military works ; it is not only beautiful as a spectacle, but 
admirable for its military architecture and efficiency; its force, 
well manned and served, is such as to forbid all approach on 
that side : the works on other parts, particularly on the sea 
face, are inferior in science and in appearance. 

The baggage of travellers is examined on passing the first 
barrier. Litde incidents illustrate manners and impressions. 
I rode along with my friends towards the place I was to 
lodge ; the servant remained with the baggage, but I had the 
keys ; George hallooed loudly after me, " Colonel ! colonel !" 
I turned about, and when I reached the custom-house 
the officer apologised, and said he did not understand I was 
colonel, or my baggage should not have been stopped a mo- 
ment. The man's eyes were not to be reproached, for my 
figure as I passed him looked like any thing but a colonel. 
The point most remarkable is the deference paid to the mi- 
litary rank. 

I was lodged in the house of my friend, W. D. Robinson, 
who was then absent at Santa Marta, but who returned 
before my departure. Here I found my family party. 

The delay waiting for a passage affiDrded full opportunities 
to examine this splendid and charmingly-situated city. The 
works of Cartagena have been described so frequently, that 
little could be added, unless that the impressions of its strength 
altogether appeared to me much less after the view than be- 
fore. The Bay, fourteen miles in length, is beautiful, but J 



622 VISIT TO COLOMBIA. 

apprehend the Spaniards, by stopping up the Bocca Grande, 
under the notion of rendering the place stronger by leaving 
the Bocca Chica alone open to navigation, have prepared the 
way for closing up a considerable part of the bason. The 
light tide of a foot to eighteen inches flows novi^ through the 
bay at ebb and flood ; but a strong current rushed through 
the Bocca Grattde^ which required a labour of thirty years 
to close it up. 

The residence at Cartagena was a constant entertainment, 
and poor Robinson appeared to derive relief from disease, 
by administering to our enjoyments. Much injustice has 
been done, and mere justice would be sufficient to render the 
memory of this man, who lately died at Caracas, respected 
by every good heart. An occasion may yet present itself 
to offer that tribute to this worthy man. 

We remained till June, and the incidents of the voyage 
being only such as are common, we landed at New York 
quarantine ground the fourth of July. 



APPENDIX. 



No. I. 

FUNDAMENTAL LAW 

OF THE 

REPUBLIC OF COLOMBIA. 

THE Sovereign Congress of Venezuela, wliose authority has been vohintarih 
recognized by the people of New Grenada, liberated by the arms of the republic, 
considering — 

1. That the Provinces of Venezuela and New Grenada, united in a single re- 
public, possess all the requisites for attaining the highest degree of power and 
prosperity : 

2. That if formed into distinct republics, and even united by the closest ties, 
far from profiting by their great advantages, they could, with difficulty, give sta- 
bility to, and command respect for, their sovereignty : 

3. That these truths, being deeply impressed on the minds of all men of su- 
perior talents and sound patriotism, have determined the governments of the 
two Republics to agree upon their Union, hitherto obstructed by the vicissitudes 
of war : 

Whehefohe, actuated by necessity and mutual Interest, and conforming to the 
report of a Special Committee of Deputies from New Grenada and Venezuela, 

In the name, and under the protection of the Almighty, tiiey have decreed, 
and do hereby decree, the following Fundamental Lavj of the llepublic of Co- 
lombia : 

Art. 1, The Republics of Venezuela and New Grenada are henceforth united 
in one, under the glorious title of the Republic of Colombia : 

2. Its territory shall comprehend the former Captain- Generalship of Venezu- 
ela and the Viceroyalty of New Grenada, comprehending an extent of a hun- 
dred and fifteen thousand square leagues, the precise limits whereof shall be 
fixed hereafter, 

3. The debts contracted separately by the two Republics, are hereby consoli- 
dated as a national debt of Colombia, for jthe pa3'ment of which all the property 
of the state is pledged, and the most productive branches of the public revenue 
shall be appropriated. 

4. The Executive power of the Republic shall be vested in a President, and, 
in case of vacancy, by a Vice-President, both to be provisionally appointed by 
the present Congress. 

5. The Republic of Colombia shall be {pro tern.) divided into the three great 
Departments of Venezuela, Quito, and Cundinamarca, comprising the Provinces 
of New Grenada, which denomination is henceforth abolished ; and their Capitals 
fjliall be the cities of Caracas, Quito, and Bogota, the adjunct Santa F6 being 
annulled. 

6. Each,j)epartment shall have a Superior Administration, with a chief, to be 
appointed for the present by the Congress, and entitled a Vice-President. 

7. A new city, to be called Bolivar, in honour of the assertor of the public li- 
berty, shall be the Capital of the Republic of Colombia. Its plan and situation 
to be fixed on by the first General Congress, upon the principle of adapting il 



624i APPENDIX. 

to the exigencies of the three departments, and to the future grandeur to which 
nature has destined this opulent country. 

8. The General Congress of Colombia shall assemble, on the first day of Janu- 
ary, 1821, in the town of Rosario de Cucuta, which, from various circumstances, 
is considered the most eligible situation. It shall he convened by the President 
of the Republic, on the first day of January, 1820, who shall communicate such 
regulations concerning elections as may be formed by a special committee, and 
approved by the present Congress. 

9. The Constitution of the Republic of Colombia shall be formed by the Ge- 
neral Congress ; to which shall be submitted, in the form of a plan, the Constitu- 
tion decreed by the present Congress, which, together with the laws enacted by 
that body, shall be provisionally carried into execution. 

10. The arms and flag of Colombia shall be determined on by the General 
Congress, and in the mean time those of Venezuela, being most known, shall 
continue to be used. 

11. The present Congress shall adjourn on the 15tli January, 1820, after which 
the new elections to the General Congress of Colombia shall be made. 

12. A committee of six members and a President shall replace the Congress, 
whose particular powers and duties shall be regulated by a decree. 

13. The Republic of Colombia shall be solemnly proclaimed throughout the 
towns and armies, accompanied by public festivals and rejoicings, and this cere- 
mony shall take place in the Capital on the 25th of the present month, in com- 
memoration of the birth of the Saviour of the World, through whose especial fa- 
vour this wished-for union, regenerating the state, has been obtained. 

14. The anniversary of this political regeneration shall be perpetually cele- 
brated with the solemnities of a national festival, at which, in imitation of the 
Olympia, premiums shall be adjudged to citizens distinguished by their virtues 
and their talents. 

The present fundamental law of the Republic of Colombia shall be solemnly 
promulgated throughout the towns and armies, inscribed on all the public re- 
cords, and deposited in all the archives of societies, municipalities, and corpora- 
tions, both clerical and secular. 

Given at the Palace of the Sovereign Congress of Venezuela, in the city of 
St. Thomas de Angostura, on the 11th day of December, in the year of our Lord 
1819, ninth of Independence. 

Fbancisco Antonio Zea, President of the Congress. 
Juan German Roscio, Antonio M. Briceno, Ignacio Munoz, 

Manuel Sedeiio, Eusebio Afanador, Onofre Bazalo, 

Juan Martinez, Francisco Conde, Domingo Alzuru, 

Jose Espaiia, Diego Bautista Urbaneja, Jose Tomas Machado, 

Luis Tomas Poraza, Juan Vincente Cardoso, Ramon Garcia Gadiz, 

Diego de Vallenilla, Deputy and Secretary. 



APPENDIX. 625 

No. II. 

FUNDAMENTAL LAW 

OF THE 

UNION OP THE PEOPLE OF COLOMBIA. 

We the Representatives of the People of New Granada and Venezeula, in get- 
neral congress assembled, 

Having carefully considered the fundamental law of the Republic of Colombia, 
passed by the Congress of Venezuela, at the city of St Thomas of Angostu- 
ra, on the 17th day of December, A. D. 1819, are of opinion, 

1. That united in one republic, the provinces of Venezuela, and New Grana- 
da, possess all the means and faculties necessary to place them in the most ele- 
vated state of power and prosperity. 

2. That constituted into separate republics, however closely bound by the ties 
of union, they would find it difficult to give stabihty or induce respect for 
their sovereignty. 

3. That, deeply penetrated by these advantages, all men of superior intelli- 
gence, and distinguished patriotism, have declared, that the governments of 
the two republics should form an union, which the vicissitudes of war have hi- 
therto prevented. 

4. Finally, that the same considerations of reciprocal interest, and a necessity 
most manifest, had made it obligatory on the Congress of Venezuela, to antici- 
pate this measure, which has been proclaimed in the most authorotative manner, 
by the unanimous votes of the people of both countries. 

In the name, and under the auspices of the Supreme being, they have decreed, 
and do hereby decree, the solemn ratification of the Fundamental Laiv of 
the Republic of Colombia, which has been before mentioned, in the follow- 
ing manner : 

Art. I. The people of New Granada and Venezuela, being united in one na- 
tional body, founded on a compact, which determines, that the government is 
now, and shall for ever be, popular and representative. 

Art. II. This new nation shall be known, and denominated, by the title of the 
Republic of Colosibia. 

Art. III. The Colombian nation is, and shall for ever be, irrevocably free and 
independent of the Spanish monarchy, and of every other foreign power or 
domination ; nor shall it ever be the patrimony of any family or person. 

Art. IV. The supreme national power shall always be separately exercised, 
and divided into legislative, executive, and juridical. 

Art. V. Th» territory of the Repubhc of Colombia, shall comprehend all that 
was within the limits of the ancient Captain-generalship of Venezuela, and the 
Viceroyalty of New Granada ; but reserving for a more suitable time their pre- 
cise demarcation. 

Art. VI. For the more advantageous administration of the Republic, its terri- 
tory shall for the present be divided into six or more departments, each bearing 
a particular name, with a suboi'dinate administration dependant on the national 
government. 

Art. VII. The present Congress of Colombia, shall form the Constitution of 
the Republic, in conformity with the principles here expressed, upon those 
liberal principles which have been consecrated by the wise practice of other 
free nations. 

Art. VIII. They recognize iii soUdum, as the national debt of Colombia, all the 
debts which the two people have separately contracted ; and for which they 
make responsible all the pi'operty of the Republic. 

79 



626 



APPENDIX. 



Art. IX. The Congress shall, in the mode that may be found convenient, ap- 
propriate the branches most productive of the pubhc revenue, the taxes, and 
shall create a special sinking fund for the redemption of the principal, and pay- 
ing the interest of the public debt, duly verified and liquidated according to law. 

Art. X. In more favourable circumstances, there shall be erected a new city, 
with the name of the Libertador Bolivak, which shall be the Capital of the Re- 
public of Colombia. Its phm and site shall be determined by Congress, founded 
,on the principle of accommodation to convenience of the different parts of this 
vast territory, and the grandeur to which this country is destined by nature. 

Art. XI. Meanwhile, until Congress shall establish the distinctive insignia, and 
the flag of Colombia, the actual flags of New Granada and Venezuela shall be 
continued in use. 

Art. XII. The ratification of the establishment of the Colombian Eepubhc, 
and the publication of the constitution, shall be celebrated in the towns and in 
the armies, with festivity, and public rejoicings, making known, in all places, the 
solemnity of the day on which the constitution is promulgated. 

Art, Xin. Tliere shall be perpetually a national festival, for three days in 
each year, upon which shall be celebrated tiie Jnniversary — 

1. Of the emancipation and indepeiidence of the people of Colombia. 

2. The unio7i in one republic, and the establishment of the Constitution. 

3. To those gvevLt triumphs and splendid victories, by which we have cor- 
qitered and secured these blessings. 

Art. XIV. 1 liis national festival shall be celebrated every year, on the 25th 
26th and 27th of December, consecrating each day to the special remembrance 
of one of those three glorious causes, and in pai-ticular, to that of the virtues, 
the intelligence, and the services rendered to the country. 

The present fundamental law of the union of the people of Colombia, shall be 
solemnly promulgated in the towns, and in the armies, inscribed on the public 
registers, and deposited in all the archives of the cabildos and corporations, civil 
and ecclesiastical, and shall be communicated to the supreme executive power 
by a special deputation. 

Done in the palace of the general congress of Colombia, in the town of Rosano 
de Cucuta, the 12th July, A. D. 1820, twelfth year of Independence. 

JOSE IGNACIO MARQUES, President. 
Antonio M. Bkiceno, Vice President. 



Felix. Restrepo, 
Jose-Cornelius Vallacia, 
Fran, de Orbeg-ogo, 
Lorenzo St. Ander, 
Andres Rojas, 
Gabriel Bnceiio, 
, Jose Prudencia Lanz, 
Miguel Tobar, 
Jose A. Mendoza, 
Sinforoso Mutis, 
Ildefonso Mendez, 
Vincente Borrero, 
Mariano Escobar, 
Diego B. Urbaneja, 
Francisco Conde, 
Cerbellon Urbina, 
Jose Ignacio Balbuena, 



Manuel M. Quijano, 
Casimiro Calvo, 
Carlos Alvarez, 
Juan B. Esteves, 
Bernardino Tovar, 
Louis Ignacio Mendoza, 
Jose Manuel Restrepo, 
Jose Joaquin Bori'ero, 
Vincente Azuero, 
Domingo B. Briceno, 
Jose Gabrel de Alcala, 
Francisco Gomez, 
Miguel Pena, 
Fernando Penalver, 
Jose M. Hinestrosa, 
Pamon Ignacio Mendez, 



Pedro F. Carbajal, 
Miguel Ibanez, 
Diego F. Gomez, 
Jose Antonio Yanez, 
Jose Antonio Paredes, 
Joaquin Plata, 
Francisco Jose Olero, 
Salvador Caraaclio, 
Nic. Ballen de Guzman, 
Jose Felix Blanco, 
Miguel de Zarraga, 
Pedro Gual, 
Alejandro Osorio, 
Policarpo Uricoichea, 
Manuel Reniles, 
Juan Ronderos, 



Joaquin Ferandozal Soto, Pacifico Jaime, 

The Deputy arid Secretary, Miguel SANTAM.vnii, 
The Deputy and Secretary, Fhancisco Soto. 

This instrument was further signed by the ministers of the interior, and the 
Vice President, St. Ander—and so promulged— the Constitution being formed 
in conformity thereto. 



ITINERARIES. 



It must be premised, that exactness or accuracy is not to be expected in any 
of these itineraries; they are mostly measured by time. The first itinerary is 
computed from the space overwhich a mule is supposed to travel in a given time. 
But as ihe difference between a road on a plain and a road on an ascent differs 
materially, and both from a descending' road, there can be no uniformity as to 
time and space in the passage of such routes. A like difference will he found 
in the condition of different mules, and of the same mules in clianges of temper- 
ature ; the ordinary journey of the mules procured from the alcaldes on the road, 
is from twenty to thirty miles a day, but twenty -five is most frequent ; though we 
have travelled forty miles of a day, availing ourselves of the cool serenity of the 
moonlight niglits. Where leagues are expressed, tlie leagues are not the same 
in different parts of the country — being in some cases leagues of 5000 geometri- 
cal paces, leagues of Burgos, leagues of Castile, French, Italian, or geographical 
leagues of twenty or twenty five to the degree ; so that tliey are to be considered 
only as approximations, upon which scarcely two travellers agree. It was given 
me as a rule for the Itinerary of the Magdalena, to deduct one mile out of forty, 
which would bring Spanish leagues to an equal quantity ; but the rule would not 
work — the number of leagues on that itinerary I think excessive. 



No. I. The first, entitled " Demonstracion de este Viaje," &c. is the Itinerary 
of Padre Madrigada, canon of Chili, when Sent on a secret mission 
from Bogota in 1812. 

No. II. Itinerary on the return of the Minister on a new and untravelled route, 
by the Meta river. 

No. III. Colonel Acosta's Itinerary from Caracas to Bogota. 

No. IV. Do. do. from Bogota to Carthagena, 

No. V. Itinerary from Bogota to Carthagena, by an Officer. 



628 



APPENDIX. 



NO. 


L DEW 


[ONSTP 


lACION DE ESTE VIAGE 


POR TIERRA Y AGUA CARACAd 






A BOGOTA E INVERSO. 




Jor- 
na- 
das. 


Fechas y horas de 
parter. 


Lugares de Salida. 


De Almorazar. 


De Comer. 


De rendir Jor- 
nada. 


I.eg^iias de 
camino se- 
gon calcula 
















norario. 


1 


Dec. 26, 


a. m. 6 


Caracas* 


Biiena Vista 


San Pedro 


Laxas 


13 


2 


22, 


5 


Laxas§ 


Coquzas 


Victoria 


Victoria 


5 


o 


23, 


5i 


Victoria! 


Giierre 


Giierre 


Maracay 


10 


4 


24, 


34 


Maracay 


San Joaquin 


San Joaquin 


Valencia 


14 


5 


Enero 1, 


p.m. 6 


Valencia* 






Tocuyito 


2 


6 


2, 


a.m. 5 


Tocuyito 


Carabobo 


Chirgua 


Tinaquillo 


12 


7 


3, 


5 


Tinaquillo 


Palmas 


Paso de la 


San Carlos 


13 


8 


10, 


p.m. 6 


San Carlos* 




[Laxa 


San Jose 


1 


9 


11, 


a.m. 3 


San Jose 


Camoruco 


Camoruco 


Caramacate 


14 


10 


12, 


6 


Caramacate 


El Altar 


El Altar 


Gamelotal 


8 


11 


13, 


5 


Gamelotal 


La Morita 


Morita 


Barquesimeto 


12 


12 


16, 


2 


Barquesimeto 
[de Madrugada 


Quibor 


Quibor 


Quibor 


10 


13 


17, 


5 


Q.uibor 


Tocuyo 




Tocuyo [baxo 


8 


14 


21, 


7 


Tocuyo* 


Buena Vista 


Buena Vista 


Humocaro 


10 


15 


22, 


12 


Humocaro Baxo 






Peiia 


8 


16 


23, 


9 


Pena 


En el Monte 


Agua Obispos 


Palmas 


8 


17 


24, 


8 


Palmas 


Idem 


Carache 


Carache 


6 


18 


25, 


7 


Carache 


Santa Ana 


Santa Ana 
En el Caracol, 


Santa Ana 


9 


19 


26, 


5^ 


Santa Ana 


En el Monte 


sombre de un 
arbol 


Truxillo 

[la Plata 


8 


20 


29, 


7 


Truxillo* 




Sabana Larga 


Hacienda de 


9 


21 


30, 


4i 


Plata 


[esta 


Mendoza 


La Puerta 


7 


22 


31, 


7 


Puerta 


Pie de la Cu- 




Timothes 


8 


23 


Feb. 2, 


11 


Timothes 




La Venta 


La Venta 


S 


24 


3, 


6 


La Venta 




Mucuchies 


Mucuchies 


11 


25 


4, 


8 


Mucuchies 




Mucupiche 


Merida 


7 


26 


7, 


8 


Merida* 




Egido 


Valle de Cu- 
[rupa 


9 


27 


8, 


7 


Curupa 


[la Pena 


Lagunillas 


Estanques 


11 


28 


11, 


6 


Estanques 


Hacienda de 


Pena 


Bayladores 


7 


29 


12, 


5 


Bayladores 




Bayladores 


Cebada 


5 


30 


13, 


7 


Cebada 


En el Monte 


La Gritja 


Gritja 


8 


31 


14, 


8 


Gritja* 




Higuera 


Higuera 


7 


32 


15, 


7 


Higuera 






Sabana Larga 


10 


33 


10, 


5 


Sabana Larga 




Capacho 


Cucuta 


12 


34 


20, 


9 


Cucuta Rosario 






Garita 


6 


35 


21, 


7 


Garita 




Chinacota 


Alinadero 


6 


36 


22, 


8i 


Alinade'ro 




Chopo 


Pamplona 


10 


37 


28, 


10 


Pamplona* 


[Guesta 


Venta 


Cacota 


4 


38 


Mar. 1, 


71 


Cacota 


Baxada de la 


Llano Grande 


Chitaga 


7 


39 


2, 


7 


CJiitaga 

[Grande 


Paramo Co- 
magate 




Pie del Pai-a- 
[mo Grande 


9 


40 


3, 


8 


Pie del Paramo 




Cerrito 


Concepcion 


8 


41 


4, 


12 


Concepcion 






Llano Ansiso 


4 


42 


5, 


7 


Ansiso 


Orilks de Rio 
Capitanejo 


Capitanejo 


Chibatera 


S 


43 


6, 


51 


Chibatera 


Venta de Su- 
[ata 


Suata 


Suata 


9 


44 


7, 


p.m. 2 


Suata 




Susacon 


11 


45 


8, 


a.m. 7 


Susacon 


Sativa 


Sativa 


Eslaba 


9 


45 


9, 


7 


Eslaba 


En el Monte 


Serinza 


Santa Rosa 


8 


47 


10, 


8 


Santa Rosa 


Llanos 


Venta Sisga 


Venta deMico 


14 


48 


11, 


7 


Venta de Mico 




Hicata 


Venta Que- 
mada 
Seducio 


15 


49 


12, 


7 


Venta Quemada 


En la Cuesta 


Hato Viejo 


16 


50 


1 13, 


6 


Seducio 
Bogota* 


Suesca 


Guatavita 
1 


Bogota 


26 
455 



In the sever-il places are prefixed a characteristic mark, apparently intended to designate tlic relative con- 
s.eqiience of the several places, and the following; appe.nrs to he the order of'magnitude or impovtimce :-* t ^ 



APPENDIX. 



629 



NO. 11. 



ITINERARY OF A JOURNEY BY THE META AND THE LLANOS 
TO CARACAS. BV THE CANON OF CHILI. 



Days. 


Departure. 


Time. Place of Departure. 


iPlace of 
Halting. 


Nature of 1 
Country. | 


Leagues. 


1 


June 14 


p. m. 12^iBogota 


Chipaque 


settled 


6 


2 


15 


a. m. 10 iCliipaque 


Coqueza 




4 


a 


18 


6 jCaqueza 


Messita 




5 


4 


19 


6iiMessita 


Taravita 




5 


5 


21 


7 


Taravita 


Susumuco 


desert 


5 


6 


22 


5 


Susumuco 


Servita 


settled 


5 


7 


24 


6 


Servita 


Asuay 




10 


8 


July 8 


7 


Asiiay 


1st post of 


desert 


8 


9 


9 


p.m. 5 


1st post of Cundinamarca 


Cundina- 


Rio Negro 


2 


10 


10 


a. m. 6 


Playa 


marca 


do. 


12 


11 


11 


6 






of the Meta 


18 


12 


12 


9 


Bahaia Corte 




settled 


20 


13 


18 


7 


St. Miguel de Jua 






12 


14 


19 


6 


Maquivo 






17 


15 


20 


6^ 


Boca del Guarimena 






15 


16 


23 


8 


St. Miguel de Macuco 






11 


17 


24 


p.m. 2 


St. Augustine de Guanapalo 




desert 


6 


18 


25 


1^ 


St. Rosalie de Cabapuri 






11 


19 


26 


a. m. 6^ 


Yslote 






8 


20 


27 


6 


Ysla 






16 


21 


28 


5 








15 


22 


29 


5 








18 


23 


30 


5^ 








15 


24 


31 


11 


Retiro de Camelsford 






5 


25 


August 1 


6 


Piedra de Tigre 






22i 


26 


2 


6 


Riv. del Auraca 






21 


27 


3 


8 


Playa de Chiguires 




settled 


22 


28 


4 


5^ 


Riv. de Altamayca 








29 


6 


H 


St. Rafael del Altama 






H 


30 


7 


5 


Cano del Gasgua 






10 


31 


8 


8 


Cano del Negro 






12 


32 


9 


11 


Guayabal en el Guarico 




desert 


13 


33 


10 


5 


Playa de Perital 




settled 


8 


34 


12 


6 


Alta Gracia 




desert 


10 


35 


,13 


6^ 


Playa 






8 


36 


•.14 


4^ 


Las Palmes 






9 


37 


15 


6 


Playa Estrecha 




settled 


10 


38 


21 


8 


Calabozo 






10 


39 


22 


5 


Pilar 






6 


40 


23 


6 


Halo de Ascano 






7 


41 


24 


7 


Mosquitero 






6 


42 


25 


5 


Flores 






5 


43 


26 


7 


St. Juan de los Moros 






6 


44 


27 


H 


St. Luis de Cura 






5 


45 


28 


5 


Victoria 




settled 


6 


46 


29 




Laxas 




settled 


18 


47 


30 




St. Pedro 




settled 


5 


48 


31 




Caracas 




settled 


18—300 



Both these Itineraries were performed in 1812, 



630 APPENDIX, 



NO. III.— ITINERARY OF COLONEL ACOSTA, ON THE ROUTE FROM 
CARACAS BY THE SAFEST ROAD, AND MOST CONVENIENT FOR, 
SUBSISTENCE AND ABUNDANT PROVISIONS. 

Span, leagues 
From Caracas to St. Pedro, . . , . . . 6J 

to Victoria, passing Consejo, .... 11 

by San Mateo to Maracay in the valley of Aragua, .^ . 7 

by St. Joaquin, Guacara, and Guayo, to Valencia, . 10 

The route thus far excellent, having only to pass the highlands to the 
foot of Cocuyzas. 

by Tucuyta to Tanaquilla, ..... 10 

to Tinaco, ....... 9^ 

San Carlos, ...... 4^ 

Good road, having only to pass the heights of Palmas and Herraanas, 

To the estate of Onoto, ..... 8 

by the mountain El Altar to the village of Cabudare, . . 13 
to Barquisimeto, ...... 1^ 

This route is good, excepting only the Altar mountain, which in winter 
is very bad, and it is necessary to dismount even in summer, 

to Quibor, . . . . . . .10 

Tucuyo, .."... 6 

These two journeys may be perfoi-med in one, by setting out in the 
afternoon and travelling all night, as the road is good and the sun by 
day is hot. 
to Humacaro Baxo, ...... 6 

Obispos, . ... . . 6^ 

Carache, . . . . . . .5 

Santa Ana, ...... 6^ 

Truxillo, ....... 5^ 

Good roads the first and last days' journeys, the rest high lands, but 
these last five may be travelled with ease in four days. 

To Mendoza, ....... H 

The road diverges into a large plain, in which there are houses to accom- 
modate travellers. 

From Mendoza to Puerte, Timothes, and Chacopo, . .8 

This road is not good ; the paramo commences hei'e, which is called 
Muchechies, at the 

village of Muchechies, (tolerably cold,) . . . 5i 

by Mucurabo, Tabay, to Merida, - . . 7 

by San Juan to the villa of Egido, . . . 6^ 

to the plantation of Estanques, ... 6 

This part of the road is bad, and in some places dangerous, fi'om its 
declivity and narrowness, 
to Bayladores Village, ..... 6^ 

From the village to the town of Bayladores, 2^? g 

to Gritja, . . . 6^5 ' ° * 

This road is not good, and in Gritja terminates the desert, called that of 
Wild Boars. 

To the post house El Cobre, . . . • ^ 

The desert commences here, aud terminates beyond the post-house of 
Ahullamar. 

From El Cobre to Ahullamar, . ., . . .5 

to the village of Tariba, ..... 4 

to San Christoval, . . . . •_ • 1 

These three journeys should be performed in two, but it is necessary 
to carry provisions. 

To Capacho, . . . • "^^^ . . . . 9 

Sim Autonio de Cucuta, . 4^3 



APPENDIX. 63i 

^'his is the last village of Venezuela, and one fourth of a league from it 
the river Tachira separates Cundlnamarca from Venezuela ; one 
fourth of a league further you reach Rosario de Cucuta, a town of 

Cundinamarca, ...... i 

to San Joseph, ....... 2 

Chopo, . . ^. . . . . 10 

If it be not necessary to change mules, you may take the direct road 

without entering St. Josef direct for Pamplona, . . 8 

from Pamplona to village of Cucuta, ... 2 J 

to Chitaga, ....... 4| 

The desert of Chitaga commences here, the road monntainous and bad. 

to Cerrito, . . . . . • . , 6 

to Capitanejo, through the villages of Conception and Enciso, 10 
In the village of Capitanejo the river is crossed ; it is a rapid stream, 
and the bridge not repaired. 

From Capitanejo to Zoata, ..... 4 

to Susacon, . ..... 3 

Satiba, ,,.,... 5^ 

Parish of Serinza, ..... 7 

Santa Rosa, ...... 3| 

Paypa, ....... Sl 

Tunja, . . . . . . .5 

The venta of Barrazon, lofty mountain, snowy, covered always, 8^ 

Choconta, ....... 6 

Zipaquira, ...... 8 

If it be not requisite to change mules, the route may be pursued direct 
by Zesquile, without passing through Zipaquira. 

From Zipaquira to Bogota, . .... 7 

NO. IV.— ITINERARY OF COLONEL ACOSTA FROM BOGOTA TO CAR. 

TAGENA. 

It is necessary to write beforehand to the chief persons of villages, to procure 
the requisite mules for saddle and baggage, to prevent detention. 

It is also necessary to carry one or two trunks for the conveyance of provi- 
sions and refreshments. 

Road from Bogota, by the Magdalena : by land, from Bogota to Honda. 
From Bogota to Facatatiba, ..... 6 

to Villeta, ...... 5 

Guaduas, ....... 4 

Bodegas de Honda, ..... 7 — 22 

This whole road has been measured geometrically, and marked every half league 
as far as Facatutiba, where the mountains commence, the road leading over 
tiie famous heights of Trigo and Sargento, 
The navigation of the Magdalena from Honda to Nare, . 43 J 

There are seven passes that are bad and dangerous, and some others 
not so dangerous, so that a tow line becomes necessary in navigating 
upward. 
From Nare to San Bartolemeo, . - . ■ 26^ 

to San Pablo, . . . . . . . 38 

the national post of Ocafia, .... 32 

Mompox, ...... 37 

Baranquilla, ...... 59 

Sabanilla, ...... 7 

There are many villages on the river not noticed here, where provisions 
are to be had, and lish especially abundant. 



632 



APPENDIX. 



-'''V. 



No. v.— ITINERARY OF THE ROUTE FROM BOGOTA TO HONDA- 
BY THE MAGDALENA TO MOMPOX AND BARRANCAS NUEVO. BY 
LAND TO TURBAGO AND CARTAGENA. 

From Bogota to 

Facitativa, 

Villetta, 

Guaduas, - 

Bodega de Honda, 

The ferry to Hondai 
From Honda by Conejo and Yeno 
to Guarumo 

Buenavista, 

Nare, 

Gurapata, 

Sau Bartolemeo, 

San Pablo, 

Barillos, 

Morales, 

Rio Viejo, 

Regidor, 

San Pedro, 

Temalameque, 

Penon, 

Guamar, 
'I Margarita, - 

Sau Fernando, 



Span. leagues. 




Span. league 


■ 


6 


Minchiqueo, 


. - - 2 


- 


8 


Mompox, 


5 


- 


7 


San Simon, 


- 4 


- 


8 


Santa Femanda, 


1 


- 


1^ 


Santa Ana, 


- 2 


id Yeno 




Pinto, 


5 


. 


6^ 


Plato, 


- 12 


- 


5 


TenerifFe, 


4 


. 


10 


Ezero, 


- 6 


- 


9 


Pedraza, - 


6 


- 


45 


El Cerro, 


- 3 


- 


38 


Penon Baxo, 


2 


. 


15 


Punto Gordo, 


- o 


- 


12 


Guimara, 


4 


. 


11 


Remolinas, 


- 4 


- 


4 


Barrancas Nuevo, 


6 


- 


5 Overland to 




- 


3 


Mabate, 


- - 7 


. 


7 


Arjona, 


6 


- 


2 


Turbaco, 


. 8 


. 


1 


Benavides, 


5 


- 


4 


Cartagena, 


„ 10 



THE END. 



